Coming Home
by iloveyoucalzona
Summary: What happens when Callie moves back to Seattle and stays with Arizona? Will they make their way back to one another? (Spoiler alert: Yes. They will. Because this is me. And I like them together.)
1. Chapter 1

**New story. Let me know if it's worth continuing!**

* * *

Arizona was walking to the coffee cart on a typical Wednesday morning when her pager began to sound. She froze, ready to run to the ER where she'd find a dying tiny human waiting for her. To her surprise, however, the page had come from Bailey—specifically, from her office.

Knitting her brows together, Arizona turned in the opposite direction from her beloved caffeine, heading instead toward the chief's office. There, she tentatively knocked on the door.

"Come in, Robbins," she heard from inside.

Arizona promptly opened the door and peeked inside. "Chief? You paged?"

"I did," Bailey confirmed. "Come in. Close the door behind you."

Arizona obeyed. She sat down in the chair across from Bailey. "Am I in trouble?" she worried.

"No, no, no," Bailey hurried to assure her. "Nothing like that. You do great work. You always have."

Arizona nodded slowly, increasingly confused about why Bailey had paged her.

"I, actually…" Bailey cleared her throat. "I wanted to talk to you about something…personal."

Arizona's eyes widened. "Oh. Is everything okay? Is Ben-"

"Not about me," Bailey interrupted. She paused, as if silently deciding something. Then, she started in. "Have you…spoken to Callie much lately?"

Arizona stiffened. She was on decent terms with her ex-wife—good terms, in fact—but she resented the question. It seemed invasive, somehow, even though Arizona knew it wasn't. Bailey had officiated their wedding, after all. And they'd been friends for years. "A little," she admitted, keeping her tone blasé. "I talk to her a little every day when I call Sof."

"Has she mentioned…how she's doing lately?" Bailey pressed.

Arizona frowned. "No." In truth, she hadn't really asked. She and Callie tended to keep their conversations to a minimum.

"Well, I'm sure she'll tell you tonight, but…" Bailey hesitated. "I know you don't like surprises. So consider this a 'surprise alert.'"

"A 'surprise alert?'" Arizona deadpanned.

Bailey just stared at her. "You ready?"

Slowly, Arizona nodded.

"Torres just called and asked for her job back."

"S-she…she _what_?" Arizona stuttered.

Bailey shrugged. "She said she wanted to come home. And I said we'd love to have her."

"So…" Arizona paused, attempting to make sense of her thoughts. "She's coming home?"

"She's coming home," Bailey confirmed. "But that's all I know. I'm sure she'll tell you the details tonight," Bailey quickly assured her.

Arizona gulped. "When?"

Bailey knew what she was asking. She wanted to know when Callie and Sofia would be back. "In a month. Her contract starts September 1st."

* * *

After her brief meeting with Bailey, Arizona spent the rest of the day drifting around the hospital like a ghost. She couldn't think about anything but her patients and their parents—she couldn't _let_ herself think about Callie.

And, of course, the thought of Sofia being home in one month's time thrilled her. Sof would have to get reacclimated, start a new school, and endure a bunch of sudden changes—again—but Arizona wasn't so worried about her. Sof was young and a kid who was, to Callie and Arizona's dismay, fairly well-accustomed to change. She was strong. She'd had to be.

Arizona was more worried about Callie. Not only about seeing her again, after a year of being apart, but about Callie herself. _Why_ was she coming home? What had happened with Penny? Had Callie gotten her heart broken again? Or had she been the one to end things?

Arizona was pondering these questions when April approached her. "Arizona!" She pulled the peds surgeon from her reverie.

Arizona's head shot up as if she were tasered.

"Are you still trying to do your one-date-a-week thing?" she wondered.

Arizona nodded. She was. She _loved_ dating, and that at least got her out of her house and head.

"Great," April chirped, "because I talked to this woman at my church who has a daughter who's gay, and-"

"You tried to set me up with some woman's daughter _at church_?" Arizona countered in amazement.

"Well, not during the service," April assured her. "Afterwards. While we all ate lunch."

Arizona allowed herself a laugh. "That's sweet, April, but-"

"Oh, give it a shot," April pleaded. "All you'll have to do is show up and see how it feels."

As Callie again began to consume Arizona's thoughts, she decided to give in. She definitely needed the distraction. "Okay. Thanks, April. Sounds great."

* * *

Arizona cancelled the date she'd had planned for that evening, offering a pathetic food-poisoning excuse. Still, she was glad she had opted to take a raincheck, in the end, because Callie called right in the middle of dinner.

"Hey," Callie offered, a little cautiously.

Arizona wiped the tomato sauce from her mouth with a paper towel. "Hey."

"Sof is here, but…" Callie paused. "I was hoping that you and I could talk first.

"Okay," Arizona breathed. She knew what was coming.

"I, um." Callie paused, and Arizona could just picture her looking down at her hand, or maybe fidgeting with something that lay on the counter. "I have some good news. Or, well, at least _I_ think it's good news. I'm not sure what you'll think."

"It is good news," Arizona assured Callie, wanting to put her out of her misery. Her ex-wife was clearly nervous, and she didn't need to be.

Callie felt her heart speed up. _Does Arizona know? Does she want me to come home?_ "It is?"

Arizona nodded. "Yeah. I get my daughter back."

 _Right. Sofia. Of course_. Callie could have slapped herself for thinking Arizona meant something else. Instead, she asked, "How did you know?"

"Bailey told me," Arizona offered. "She said you'll be home in a month."

"Yeah," Callie exhaled. "And I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just…I mean, you're the first person I've told, after Bailey, and I just had to tell her because I had to ask for my job back. I…I didn't want to say anything until it was a sure thing. I wanted to make sure I still had somewhere to come home to."

"You'll always have a home here," Arizona vowed. Then, feeling the way her heart drummed in her chest at the implication in her confession, she added, "That's what Bailey seemed to say today. That you're always welcome at Grey-Sloan." _Good save_.

"Right," Callie acknowledged. "Of course. So, um, you know I'll be back at the end of August?" she asked.

"Yep. Sounds good," Arizona approved.

But, despite Arizona's even tone, Callie refused to believe that her ex-wife was so okay with the sudden change—especially after enduring such a big change only a year before, when she'd first moved to New York. "Arizona..." she began. "Are you okay?"

 _"Me_?" Arizona's eyebrows flew up in surprise. "Are _you_ okay?"

Suddenly, Callie was equally as confused. "What? No. I'm fine. I'm _great_ ," she corrected. And she was. Sort of. Making a plan to come home, talking to Arizona...she felt better than she had in a while. "What about you?"

"I'm fine, Callie," Arizona vowed. "Are you getting an apartment? Is that all set up?"

Callie laughed to herself, a little embarrassed. "I probably need to get on that," she admitted. "It's all moving pretty quickly."

"Stay with me." Arizona spoke the words before she had the chance to consider them, and then it was too late to take them back. Then again, she wasn't entirely sure she _wanted_ to take them back.

Callie was silent for a moment, considering. Then: "Really?"

Arizona nodded. "Sure. I mean, we're still family. Right?"

Callie smiled. "Right," she promised. "And it'll give us a chance to catch up."

"Yeah," Arizona breathed.

They were silent for a moment, and then Callie remembered that all Arizona _really_ wanted to do was talk to Sofia. "Well, it's getting late," she began. "I better give the phone to Sof."

Right on time, Sofia rounded the corner to the kitchen and hopped up and down in excitement as she waited for her turn.

Callie grinned. "She's dying to talk to you. So I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay? And I'll see you in a month."

Arizona inhaled a steadying breath. "Okay, Callie. Now, put Sofia on. I miss her." _And I miss you, too_ , she thought. But, of course, she didn't dare say it.

* * *

The month of August passed by in a blur. Callie distracted herself from thoughts about her future in Seattle with packing up box after box, and Arizona distracted herself from her own thoughts about the future with date after hopeless date.

And it wasn't that the dates were bad. They weren't. They were fun. Flirty. Easy. And the women were beautiful. In fact, at least two were signed with modeling agencies and ten years her junior.

Arizona realized that, maybe, she was the kind of woman who enjoyed the chase—maybe too much. God knew she had literally followed Callie on multiple occasions before they started dating. Not in a creepy way, though. She had just been observing her as the ortho goddess she was. It had been more out of curiosity than stalkerishness.

But the problem was she couldn't chase any of the women she was dating now. She already knew that they wanted her, so how could she chase them?

And, then again, maybe she didn't care about the chase at all. Maybe it was just that none of the women were Callie.

Still, dating was more fun than not dating—especially after her long bout of celibacy—so Arizona vowed to continue trying. Especially because one coworker after another kept setting her up with the lesbian friends they knew. That made dating easy. All she had to do was show up and woo them.

And, above all, dating made it easier for Arizona not to think about Callie.

That is, until she saw her, anyway.

* * *

"Torres, I'd love to give you the whole welcome-back orientation, but I just don't have the time today, so we're going to have to settle for a little walk-and-talk orientation instead."

"Sounds good," Callie quickly conceded, happy to be back. She hurried to keep up with the tiny chief.

"A few things have changed since you were here a year ago. And you don't know about any of them because you never visited." Bailey fixed Callie with a hard look.

"Hey, I had some stuff to figure out. I needed some space," Callie defended. "But I'm back now."

"For good?" Bailey pressed.

"For good," Callie swore.

"Good," Bailey quipped, stopping by the nurses' station on the peds floor. "Now, I've gotta go to the ER, but we'll catch up soon. You can buy me a drink or something."

Callie laughed. "I can buy _you_ a drink?"

"That's what I said." Bailey wagged an accusatory finger in Callie's face. "You owe me some answers."

"Wait. The ER?" Callie questioned in confusion as Bailey turned to go. "If you have to go to the ER, what are we doing on the peds floor?"

Bailey shrugged innocently, but Callie saw the way something caught her eye behind Callie's head.

As Bailey made her escape, Callie turned around. And, immediately, her heart began to pound in her chest.

There she was: looking as if she'd seen a ghost, even though it hadn't been long since they had last seen each other.

 _Arizona_.

* * *

They had only had enough time to say a quick "hi" before Arizona was called away for a surgery. Still, hours later, Callie saw Arizona again, and her heart sped up. _What's wrong with me?_ she wondered. _Do I have some newfound allergies?_

Down in the ER, Callie caught sight of Arizona a third time and felt herself freeze. _What is it about this hospital—about Seattle—that is making my chest ache?_ she asked herself.

"Torres?" Richard had stridden over to stand beside her, and Callie jumped in surprise.

"Oh. Webber. Hi."

Richard laughed, then he turned serious. "You okay?"

"I'm great," Callie assured him without thinking. Then, she added, "I don't know. I feel kind of lightheaded. Dizzy." She shrugged, waving it off. "I guess I'm a little overwhelmed."

Richard's eyebrows descended. He was clearly concerned. "C'mere." He urged her toward a quiet corner of the bustling ER. "Let's check it out."

"Oh, Richard..."

"It'll only take a minute," he assured her. "It'll give us a second to catch up, anyway."

She sat on the bed with a sigh of surrender.

Richard prepared to stick the eartips of his stethoscope into his ears. "Any other symptoms?"

Callie shrugged. "Chest pain. Sort of," she admitted.

Richard frowned. Then, he raised the chestpiece of the stethoscope to her heart. He looked at his watch, counting the beats. Seemed steady. Not too fast.

While Callie waited, she spotted Arizona. She was moving toward the elevator alongside a stretcher.

Her heart sped up, and it was enough that Richard looked up, alarmed. He followed Callie's eyes and saw Arizona.

Then, he turned back to Callie with understanding. "When did this start?" he asked. "Today?"

Callie tore her eyes away and focused on Richard. "I guess so."

"And you said you had chest pain?" Richard pressed. "So…your heart hurts?"

"I don't have an arrhythmia or anything, do I?" Callie panicked.

"No," Richard shook his head. "There's nothing wrong with you—physically, anyway."

Callie looked at him in confusion.

Richard gestured toward Arizona with a tilt of his head. "You saw Robbins and your heart started beating faster," he explained.

"What?" Callie attempted to sound incredulous, but, really, she wasn't surprised. That made sense. She knew that made sense.

"You still love her." It wasn't a question. Richard knew it was the truth.

Callie sighed. Richard was right. She loved Arizona. And she realized then that _that_ was why she had decided she'd had to come back to Seattle. To come home. Because Arizona _was_ home.

She put her face in her hands. Loving Arizona was hopeless. So many years had passed. And, even being back, there was still so much emotional distance between them.

And, of course, her ex-wife had moved on. Hadn't she? "What do I _do_?" she demanded. She needed a cure.

When Callie finally looked up, Richard offered a helpless shrug. "There's only one cure for this, Torres."

Callie waited, eyes wide and expectant.

Richard smiled and set an allaying hand on her shoulder. "Listen to your heart."


	2. Chapter 2

That evening, Arizona got off work before Callie, and she raced to Meredith's to pick up Sofia and see her at last.

As they skipped home, hand-in-hand, Sofia talked a mile a minute, too excited to slow down. "I'm so, so, _so_ excited to be home!" She swung their entwined hands in the air.

Arizona laughed. "You're excited? Are you sure?" she joked.

"I'm excited times infinity!" Sofia exclaimed. "And you, me, and Mama will all be together!"

"That's right," Arizona confirmed. "But…you know that's only until Mama finds a house of her own, right? It's just for a little while, and then you'll have two houses again." She hoped the new living arrangement didn't confuse Sofia. She and Callie were still as divorced as ever.

Sofia waved her off. "What are we doing this weekend, Mommy?"

"Well, you start school on Tuesday, so I took this whole weekend off," Arizona answered with a smile. She felt almost giddy. Regardless of how weird it had been to see Callie again, it felt _right_ to see Sofia. "What do _you_ want to do? We can do anything."

As they walked toward the front door, Sofia considered that question before deciding, "Let's watch movies! And read! And paint our nails! And make pancakes!"

Arizona leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "I'm glad to see that not _that_ much has changed." She opened the door. "Come on, kiddo. We're home."

* * *

Callie was called into an emergency surgery at six, so she didn't make it home—or, well, to Arizona's—for dinner. When she finally got there, it was already past ten.

She let herself in with the key Arizona had given her over a year before in case of emergencies. "Arizona?" she called softly, assuming Sofia was already asleep.

"In here," Arizona beckoned from the kitchen.

Callie followed the sound of her voice, pausing when she saw Arizona in the kitchen. "Hey," she breathed. "Sof asleep?"

Arizona nodded.

"Sorry to come in so late."

Arizona offered a small smile. "Don't be. This is your home now, too." She paused, realizing how wrong that sounded. "I mean, for a while, anyway. Until you find your own place."

"Right," Callie breathed. Again, she felt her heart beating faster. And she knew why.

"Sofia and I unpacked a little tonight, but most of your boxes are in the garage," Arizona offered. "Do you want to go put down your stuff in the guestroom? I could heat up some leftover pasta for you, if you're hungry."

Callie nodded. "That'd be great," she countered, grateful. "I'll be right back."

As Callie walked down the hall toward her bedroom to set down her purse and change into pajamas, Arizona opened the fridge to make Callie a plate of dinner. Already, it was an oddly domestic scene. Odd because it was just so _awkward_ , with two people who had once meant everything to one another living in a house together as almost strangers. And domestic because there Arizona was, heating up dinner for Callie after a late surgery, just as she would have when they were married.

After kissing a sleeping Sofia goodnight, Callie walked back into the kitchen to find Arizona sitting at the table, across from a steaming plate of pasta and a glass of red wine. Callie gulped. It looked like she wanted to talk.

Arizona looked up as she sat down. "You check on Sofia?"

Callie nodded. "Sound asleep." She set her napkin on her lap. "Thank you for this. It looks great."

Arizona smiled. "Of course." Then, she was silent for a few minutes, giving Callie a chance to eat and giving herself a chance to take Callie in.

Feeling watchful blue eyes on her, Callie attempted to eat her spaghetti without slurping or making a mess. In the quiet house, she was hyper-aware of her own presence—her audible breathing, the sound of her eating—and she chewed painfully slowly, attempting to minimize the noise.

Finally, when she was finished eating, Arizona worked up the courage to prompt, "Callie?"

Callie looked up, nervous. She wasn't sure what Arizona wanted to talk about, and that worried her.

"Would you mind telling me…why you're here?"

And, rather than answer the question directly, Callie offered why she left New York instead. "Penny proposed."

Arizona's eyebrows flew up.

"And I said no."

Arizona was reeling. Callie could tell that she hadn't expected to hear that.

" _Why_?" she finally asked.

Callie shrugged. "The next time I get married, I need to be sure. I knew I couldn't live without you. That I didn't want to."

Inadvertently revealing a few of the hurt feelings that swam beneath the surface, Arizona countered, "It seems like you've been doing just fine without me."

Callie met her eyes. "I'm back, aren't I?"

Arizona's eyes narrowed as she attempted to decipher the meaning behind Callie's words. _Is she implying what I think she's implying?_ She was scared to believe it.

"Arizona." Callie reached out for Arizona's hand, then thought better of it and pulled back.

Arizona felt her heart speed up in anticipation, then slow in disappointment. She looked down at the strong hand she wished would touch her. She had always loved Callie's hands.

Callie followed Arizona's eyes, seeing the intensity with which Arizona stared at her hand. Was there longing there? She couldn't be sure.

Self-conscious, she lowered her hand off the table and onto her lap, and Arizona again met her eyes.

"I'm glad I went to New York," Callie admitted.

Arizona felt her mood sour.

"Because now I know that I don't belong there," Callie continued. "And I _definitely_ don't belong with her."

Slowly, Arizona nodded. So Callie and Blake really were done. She watched as Callie searched her face, looking for some sort of meaning, and she acknowledged that Callie would find no answers in her hardened features. Part of her knew that she was being hard on Callie—maybe even cruel—but another part of her was angry, and sad, and hurt, and that was the part that ruled her in that moment.

Finally, Callie began to stand up. "Anyway, I guess I should let you get to bed." She took her plate over to the sink and turned on the water.

Arizona stood up, too. Rather than go to bed, though, she watched Callie wash her dishes. Every fiber of her being yearned to walk over to her, wrap her arms around her middle, and breathe her in.

But, of course, she couldn't do that. So she didn't.

Instead, she prompted, "Callie?"

Callie turned to face her.

Suddenly feeling shy, Arizona pursed her lips. "I'm, um. I'm glad you're here."

One side of Callie's mouth quirked up. Not much good had come out of that day, but Arizona's simple words felt like a victory.

Arizona offered a tight-lipped smile of her own before she turned to go. "Goodnight, Callie. I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

The following morning, Arizona woke up with a sense of purpose. In spite of her conflicting feelings, ultimately she was happy that Callie was back home in Seattle, and she didn't want to push her away.

So she began walking toward the kitchen, determined to get started on some pancakes as a sort of peace-offering.

Instead of being greeted by a dark, empty kitchen, however, she found Callie and Sofia, standing over the stove.

"Morning, Mommy!" Sofia exclaimed.

"Morning, Sof." Arizona sounded bewildered.

Sofia grabbed the spatula from Callie. "We're making pancakes!"

Callie met her eyes. "I wanted to make you breakfast. I hope you still like pancakes," she said, a little ruefully.

Arizona just nodded, stunned that the two of them had had the same idea.

"Sit down, Mom! I'm good at flipping pancakes now! I'm doing it all by myself."

"Okay, okay!" Arizona sat down at the table, and Callie walked over and handed her a steaming cup of coffee. She sat down across from her and watched as Arizona took a sip. Then, she felt her stomach flip as the blonde closed her eyes and licked the cream from her lips with gusto, appreciating the coffee in its perfection.

Arizona reopened her eyes and looked at Callie. "You remembered."

"How you like your coffee?" Callie asked.

Arizona nodded.

"Give me a little credit," Callie attempted to joke. "I made your coffee for years. I remember at least a few things about you." _I remember everything about you_ , she added to herself. Arizona was seared in her memory.

"Yeah?" Arizona challenged. "What else?"

"I remember how much you love Primo Pizza," Callie answered immediately. "I was thinking the three of us could go out tonight? My treat."

Arizona smiled and began replying, "That sounds gr-" then remembered that she had a date that night—at April's insistence. "Shoot. I actually, um," she looked over at Sof, "I have to go out tonight."

Callie's eyebrows flew up. "Oh." _Be cool_ , she reminded herself. Aware of Sofia's presence, she lowered her voice. "On a date?"

"Is that okay?" She realized how that sounded, then added, "I mean, do you think you and Sof can fend for yourselves tonight?"

"Sofia, what do you think?" Callie prompted. "Can we live without Mommy for a night?"

"No!" Sofia scampered down from the bar stool she was kneeling on and ran over to wrap her arms around Arizona.

Arizona laughed and kissed Sofia's cheek. "Sweetie, I'd _way_ rather have dinner with you, but I already promised, and you don't want me to break my promise, do you?"

Solemnly, Sofia shook her head. "No."

"How about I make you a promise, too? What should we do next weekend? Anything you want."

"Hmm…" Sofia tapped her chin the way she had seen Arizona do in the past.

It made Callie smile as she strode into the kitchen to make sure the pancakes didn't burn.

"We could have a movie night," Sofia suggested. "With popcorn!"

"That's what I was hoping you would say!" Arizona exclaimed, tightening her arms around her little girl.

Sofia grinned proudly. So did Callie.

* * *

That night, after putting Sofia to bed, Callie stayed awake and waited for Arizona to come home.

She knew it wasn't her place, but she was curious about whether or not Arizona _would_ come home, or if she'd spend the night at her date's place. She wanted to know how the date went, too.

It wasn't that she was jealous. She just wished it was her who was taking Arizona to dinner.

 _Okay, so that's jealousy. But still._

At 9:30, Callie heard Arizona's key in the lock and hurried to pick up a magazine from the coffee table to make it seem as if she were actually doing something, instead of just waiting. She flipped through it without reading the words.

Arizona walked in through the living room and immediately saw her. "Hey." She offered a tired smile.

"Hey," Callie breathed. She couldn't help but run her eyes down Arizona's frame. She looked good. "How, um. How'd it go?"

Arizona collapsed onto the couch with a sigh.

"That good, huh?"

That earned her a real smile.

"No, it was fine," Arizona admitted. "She was great." She was silent for a moment then inspected the magazine in Callie's hand and knit her brows. "You're reading the _Journal of Pediatric Surgery_?" she asked in disbelief.

"What? Oh." Callie noticed what she was holding. "Yeah," she lied. "It's fascinating."

Arizona's eyes narrowed as she attempted to read the header of the article, and Callie hurried to close the magazine and set it back down on the table.

Wanting to distract Arizona from her fib, Callie asked, "What was she like?" She was genuinely curious. "Are you going to see her again?"

Arizona made a face. "Probably not. She was just so…easy."

Callie waited.

"I mean, I keep meeting these amazing women, but I can tell that they're ready to call a U-Haul by the end of the first date. You know?" It was strange to talk about women with Callie, but she was a little tipsy and Callie was there, so she couldn't help but talk.

Callie smirked. "No, I don't. Women like me, but not the way they like you." Arizona had always been a charmer.

"Oh, please." Arizona rolled her eyes, not believing that for a second. _Anyone would be crazy not to fall in love with Callie at first sight_ , she thought. "It's just weird," she continued. "How they fall in love so quickly. Or, well, in _lust_ , anyway."

"I fell for you fast," Callie countered, "and you never seemed to have a problem with that."

Arizona hummed, accepting that as true. "But it was different with you. I mean, I wanted you just as much. From the start. Maybe more."

Callie felt her stomach flutter at that confession, but she only asked, "Why are you dating then? Like, if none of the dates are really working out, why bother?"

Arizona scowled. "April, Richard, and Bailey keep setting me up with women they know. They got tired of me sulking."

Callie raised her eyebrows in a question.

"With you in-" Arizona paused, correcting herself. "With _Sofia_ in New York…" she corrected. That was what she had meant to say. "I was kind of lonely."

"Well, you can't totally fault the women for falling head-over-heels for you," Callie insisted.

Smiling, Arizona shook her head and modestly countered, "I didn't say _that_." _Head-over-heels_ was taking it a little far.

"You know what I mean," Callie began.

Arizona waited, eyes unblinking. She felt somewhat vulnerable, in that moment, as she waited for Callie to say more.

Callie offered a tender smile. "Arizona, come on. You're so easy to love," she insisted. "They'd be crazy if they didn't see that."

Arizona's eyes widened. Those words she hadn't expected to hear. "Thanks," she exhaled. "You're pretty lovable yourself." She knew that better than anyone. It was impossible for her not to love Callie. That was the problem.

Callie felt her cheeks redden. She slid her hand from her lap to the couch, wanting to touch Arizona's, which lay mere inches away. Then, she stopped herself, maneuvering her fingers into a loose fist instead to conceal her original intentions.

Arizona's eyes fixed on Callie's hand. _TOUCH ME_ , she thought, before she even realized she was thinking it. She realized in that moment how desperate she was for Callie to touch her. How much she wanted it. But Callie seemed to go out of her way _not_ to touch her, even when a friend would have.

Forcing herself back into reality, Arizona cleared her throat. "Callie?"

"Hmm?" Callie looked up, grateful for a distraction from the porcelain skin that preoccupied her thoughts.

"I have one more question about Blake."

Callie waited.

"Did _you_ end things, or did she break up with you after you said no to getting married?"

"I ended things," Callie answered honestly. "I realized that, if I didn't want to marry her, I didn't want to be with her at all. So I called the whole thing off."

Arizona nodded in understanding. Then, hesitantly, she said, "I have…one more question about her."

Callie offered a small nod, letting her ex know that was okay.

"Why didn't you want to marry her?"

Callie didn't answer right away. She carefully chose her words. "Because it was different with you."

Arizona raised her eyebrows.

"I mean, I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you at the very beginning," Callie expanded. "I could have died when you proposed."

"Ha," Arizona deadpanned. "Funny."

Callie laughed. "No, I mean _before_ the car crash and the literal dying. I could have died of happiness because I loved you and wanted to spend my life with you more than anything."

"So you didn't want to marry her because she wasn't me?" Arizona joked. Well, mostly joked. Half-joked, maybe.

Callie stared at her, attempting to decipher her mood. She didn't know whether she should tell the truth and put everything out there. She worried that the truth might ruin everything.

As Callie met bright blue eyes in utter seriousness, she watched as all the humor fell from Arizona's face.

She decided to be honest. "Yeah," she breathed. "That's the problem. No one else is you."


	3. Chapter 3

**Pssst. Let me know what you think! Hope you all are liking this so far!**

* * *

At work the following week, April skipped toward Arizona in the attendings' lounge. "Hey! How'd the date go?"

Arizona shrugged without looking up from her phone. "It was okay."

"Did you like her?" April pressed, curious.

Arizona shrugged again.

"Come on!" April pleaded. "Let me live vicariously through you! Give me a little dirt. Did you go home together?"

"No!" Arizona exclaimed, a little more fiercely than she'd meant to.

"Okay!" April surrendered. "At least tell me what you thought of her, then."

Arizona clicked her phone off and finally gave her friend her full attention. "She was nice," she finally offered. "We got along. I just don't want to talk about her."

April raised an eyebrow. "Is that maybe because you would rather talk about someone else?"

Arizona's brows furrowed, and she opted to play dumb. "What do you mean?"

April rolled her eyes. "Arizona, you're living with Callie again! She's been back for a week now. How is it?"

"It's fine."

April crossed her arms. "Come on. You've got to give me a little more than that."

"It's pretty much the way you'd expect it to be," Arizona surrendered. "It's just kind of…weird."

"Weird _how_?" April pressed. "Weird like you're realizing you still love each other?"

Arizona pursed her lips.

"Oh my gosh!" April squealed. "That's it, isn't it?"

Arizona raised her shoulders. "Yeah," she breathed.

April was so excited that she looked almost crazed.

"I mean, I always knew that," Arizona defended. "We were together for a long time. Feelings don't just go away. You know that."

"But…?" April prompted.

Arizona's lips quirked up, and she met her friend's eyes. "But now I know she feels the same."

* * *

"I _think_ she feels the same," Callie told Meredith as they sat across from each other in the cafeteria. "I'm not sure. It's only been a week. But..."

"But…?" Meredith prompted.

Callie shrugged, and she couldn't help but smile. "I don't know. I have a feeling that this is going somewhere good."

Meredith's eyebrows flew up. "You think you're going to get back together? Do you _want_ that?"

Callie frowned. "What do you mean?" Something about Mer's tone made her think she didn't approve.

Meredith put up a hand. "Hey. Don't get mad. I'm just wondering. I wouldn't be a good friend if I didn't question your judgment a little."

"I'm not mad," Callie swore. "What do you mean?"

Meredith gave her a look. "Callie, you almost married another woman, like, a month ago."

Callie opened her mouth to defend herself—that wasn't exactly true—but Meredith didn't let her speak. "Okay, fine," she conceded. "You were just with another woman for long enough that _she_ was ready to marry you."

Callie nodded in acceptance. That was true.

"And now you've been back for a week." Meredith paused. "Are you sure this isn't a…rebound?"

"No!" Callie exclaimed. "I mean, yes, I'm sure. It's not a rebound."

Meredith looked unconvinced.

"Mer, she's my Derek," Callie explained. "I know things got screwed up, and we broke. But maybe it all happened for a reason."

Meredith crossed her arms. "You think Arizona cheating on you was meant to happen?"

Callie expelled a breath. "No. But loving Penny? Maybe. Because now I know I can love other people—that other people can love me. Kind of like with Riggs. He reminded you that there's a whole world beyond Derek."

Meredith nodded in agreement. "So…Penny reminded you that there's a world beyond Arizona?"

"Exactly," Callie agreed. "But the difference is that I still can be in that world with Arizona. That's still an option for me. And I _want_ to be with her. I want us to experience the world together."

At that, Meredith at last understood. "She's your Derek."

Callie smiled. "Or Derek was your Arizona," she countered. "But yeah. She's the love of my life. The only one. That's what I've learned."

"And you don't know how she feels?" Meredith asked.

Callie shook her head. "Not yet."

* * *

The following night, Arizona prepared to fulfill her promise to Sofia. "Sof, choose a movie!" she called as she finished washing the dinner dishes.

Sofia ran from her room to the living room, eager to pick out something from her mom's collection. "Mama, help me!"

Callie came over and sat down beside Sofia on the floor. She looked at all the options Sof had laid out. "Which one do you want to watch, sweetie?"

"I need help deciding!" she insisted. "Mommy, come!" she called to Arizona.

Arizona walked in from the kitchen and stood over them. "Which ones are you stuck between, Sof?"

Sofia scrunched her lips together as she read the titles. "Um... _Fly Away Home_ , _A Little Princess_ , _Kiki's Delivery Service_ , or _The Incredibles_."

"Hmm…" Callie and Arizona considered that.

"Okay," Sofia began to get organized, "let's vote. Who wants to see _Fly Away Home_?"

Neither Callie nor Arizona raised their hands.

Sofia tried again. " _A Little Princess_?"

Again, neither raised their hands. Arizona watched Callie carefully, deciding to vote for whatever Callie wanted to watch. It didn't really matter to her, anyway.

What she didn't realize was that Callie was doing the same thing. She was eager to choose whichever movie Arizona wanted.

" _Kiki's Delivery Service_?"

Arizona eyed Callie while Callie eyed Arizona. Neither raised their hands.

" _The Incredibles_?" Sofia looked at her moms expectantly. They had to at least choose _one_ , and that was the final option.

At last, they both raised their hands.

"That sounds good, kiddo," Callie offered.

"Yeah, sweetie," Arizona added. "You'll like it."

"Yay!" Sofia exalted. She ran toward the couch, climbed on it, and began jumping up and down. "Can we make a fort, too? We can watch it from inside!"

Arizona laughed. "I think we can manage that. How about you go get your pajamas on and brush your teeth while Mama and I start building?"

"Okay!" Sofia ran off to her room, leaving Callie and Arizona alone.

Callie smiled at Arizona. "She's so much happier with you around."

Arizona grinned back and ironically flipped her hair with her hand. "Of course she is." She grabbed a few sheets from the closet, and she and Callie began building an elaborate fort that stretched from the back of the couch to the TV.

Sofia galloped back into the room only moments later, declaring, "I'm ready!"

"Did you brush your teeth?" Callie asked.

"No."

"Sofia, you have to brush," Arizona insisted, "or they're going to fall out!"

"That's the point!" Sofia countered. "Then the tooth fairy will come and leave me money!"

Callie put her hands on her hips. "No way. If you don't brush, Mommy and I will tell the tooth fairy that you don't take care of your teeth, and she won't leave you anything. She only rewards kids who brush."

Sofia pouted out her lower lip. "Nooo," she whined.

Arizona laughed and shooed her back toward the bathroom. "You better go brush! You have to wait for them to fall out on their own!"

Sofia grumbled to herself as she walked away, and Callie ducked to plant an affectionate kiss on Sof's head as she passed. When she turned back around, she found Arizona smiling at her. "What?" Callie wondered, feeling a little self-conscious.

Arizona shrugged, attempting to appear nonchalant. "Nothing. I just love how, no matter what happens, we still work together well." She went back to spreading the sheet over the armchair.

Callie smiled. "We've always made a good team, haven't we?"

Arizona answered her with a sweet smile.

"Okay, I did it!" Sofia announced as she strode back in. "I brushed my teeth!"

"Good girl," Arizona cooed.

"Sof, you want to go find us some pillows and blankets?" Callie suggested.

"Yes! It's going to be the best fort ever!"

* * *

Two hours later, the movie ended. Callie sat up and muted the credits. She prompted, "Sof, what'd you think?"

Arizona sat up, too, and they looked expectantly at Sofia only to see that she was fast asleep.

"Oops," Callie whispered.

"How did she fall asleep during that?" Arizona wondered. "It's an action-packed movie!"

Callie chuckled. "I don't know. She must have worn herself out with all her excitement."

Arizona laughed with her. "That's probably part of it. And all these changes," she added regretfully. "New school, new house, new state, new time zone…" She trailed off.

"Yeah," Callie breathed. She lay back down, looking up at the sheets stretched over their heads.

Arizona followed Callie's lead and lay beside her, close but not touching. "Our plan to move her back and forth between New York and Seattle would've never worked," she mused. "That would've been no life for her—moving around year in and year out, changing schools every year the way I had to…"

"I know," Callie sighed in agreement. "I was stupid to think it was even remotely plausible. It was a bad idea."

Arizona turned to face her and realized only then how close they were. She could see every freckle and line on Callie's face, even in the low lamplight. "Not stupid," she corrected. Callie was never stupid.

"Fine. Naïve." Callie turned and smiled at her, and then her smile slipped as she too noted how close they lay. Their faces were so close that they traded breath, in, out, in, out.

"Do you think she'll have to move again?" Arizona wondered.

Callie knew that the question went beyond only Sofia's well-being. That, certainly, was the most important thing, but Arizona was also asking Callie how committed she was. How _sure_ she was about staying and, with that, how sure she was about Arizona.

"I'm not going anywhere," Callie vowed.

Arizona nodded, acknowledging the devotion in Callie's words.

"Not without you, anyway," Callie added. There was something about the night and the darkness that made her honest. Maybe it made her impulsive, but she didn't care. She wanted to say how she felt.

"Callie…" Arizona breathed. A warning, maybe. Or a plea.

Callie wasn't sure. "I'm just saying," she quickly amended, "if we ever move again, it'll be as a family."

Arizona nodded, accepting that. "We're better together."

Callie's eyes widened in pleasure and surprise, and Arizona added, "As parents, I mean. We're better parents when we work together.

"That's true," Callie agreed. "I feel like I'm a better parent for knowing you. Does that make sense?" She had always been good with kids, but somehow, knowing Arizona…

"It makes sense," Arizona hummed. "You, um..."

"What?" Callie prompted, turning to face her again—head on this time. She shifted from her back to her side, giving Arizona her full attention.

And Arizona could hardly think with Callie so close. She could hardly function. How easy it would have been to press their lips together. She wouldn't even have had to move, really. She could have just craned her neck a little, and…

"I just…" Arizona paused, stalling her confession. But Callie had been honest before. She knew it was her turn. "I feel like, for knowing you, I'm a better… _everything_." She blushed. "I mean, not just a better parent and doctor. But a better person, too."

That earned her a warm smile from Callie.

Callie was melting. She was feeling feelings that only Arizona had ever been able to stir in her. It was just another reminder of how different things were with Arizona. How _real_. How much nothing else ever compared and never could compare.

More than anything, she wanted to grab Arizona and pull her close. But she didn't. Not yet. Instead, she turned her attention back to Sofia. "Do you think we should carry her to bed?"

Arizona looked over at their little sleeping beauty, who lay on a pile of pillows with a blanket tucked around her. "She looks pretty comfortable, actually," she whispered.

Callie smiled. "Yeah. She does." She turned back to look at Arizona. "What do you say? Wanna have a sleepover with her?"

Arizona's eyebrows shot up. "In here? Seriously?"

"Why not?" Callie countered. She sat up to grab a few more pillows and a wayward blanket. She arranged the pillows around them, careful not to touch Arizona. As she opened the blanket and covered their legs with it, she got a whiff of it. Pure Arizona. The scent of warm cotton and something else delicious that she could never quite place.

Suddenly exhausted, Arizona shut her eyes. "It _is_ comfortable," she admitted.

Callie nodded in agreement. "It is."

Arizona popped an eye open and snuck a look at Callie, who had closed her eyes. As strange as it was to have a sleepover with her ex-wife inside a blanket fort, what was even stranger was how…normal it felt.

What was strange was the fact that it didn't feel strange at all. It felt right.

"You know," she began cautiously.

Callie opened her eyes, immediately alert despite her sleepiness.

"I was supposed to go on a date tonight," Arizona confessed.

Callie's eyebrows flew up. "You were?"

"Yeah," Arizona breathed.

"Why didn't you go?" Callie asked, her heart pounding in her ears.

Arizona seemed to shrug. "I guess I'm having a similar problem to yours."

Callie waited.

"I kept trying to meet people, first after the divorce, and then after you left for New York, but…" Arizona offered a small smile. "No one else is you."

Callie felt her throat close momentarily. She just clammed up as she processed those words. Then, she recovered. "That's, um, a problem for you?"

Arizona nodded. "Yeah," she whispered. "A big one."


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you to everyone who has left meaningful reviews so far! I hope you all like this chapter!**

* * *

"Kepner." Richard gestured the redhead over as he slyly looked around, wanting to ensure that no one was close enough to overhear their conversation.

April strode over to him. "Dr. Webber?"

"Any updates on _Operation Calzona_?" he prompted. He leaned toward her conspiratorially.

"Well…" April began.

He crossed his arms. "I know Robbins talks to you. So let's hear it."

"Operation Calzona is well underway," she assured him. "Arizona says they still love each other."

Richard's eyes bugged. "They said so?"

April nodded. "I know that Callie did. _And_ Arizona was supposed to have a date on Saturday night, but she cancelled. They're making their way back to each other."

" _Excellent_ ," Richard exalted. "I'll tell the chief."

* * *

The following afternoon, Arizona got off work at three, so she picked Sofia up from school.

"Hey sweetie," she smiled as Sofia opened the car door. "How was your day?"

Sofia sat down in the backseat. "Good! I finished my math homework in class, so Mr. Martin let me read."

"Oh yeah?" Arizona asked as she pulled out onto the road. "What are you reading these days?"

" _Maniac Magee_!" Sofia exclaimed.

"Is it any good?"

Sofia nodded. "Mm hm."

As they pulled into the driveway a few minutes later, Sofia wondered, "Mom?"

"Hmm?" Arizona put the car into park.

"Since I already finished my math and don't have that much other stuff to do, can I watch a show tonight when I'm done?"

"That sounds fair," Arizona acquiesced. "Will you help me make Mama a nice dinner, too?"

Sofia began walking toward the front door with Arizona right behind her. "Why are we making Mama a nice dinner?"

Arizona shrugged. "Why not? She won't get off work until eight. Don't you think she'd like to come home to some warm food her loving daughter helped make?" She grinned and wrapped her arm around Sofia's shoulders.

Sofia giggled. "Okay, I'll help."

* * *

A few hours later, Arizona and Sofia were finishing cooking when Callie walked in.

"Hi, Mama!" Sofia called.

Callie strode into the living room, where she spotted the set table and Arizona and Sofia in the kitchen. "Have you two not eaten dinner yet?"

Sofia shook her head. "We were waiting for you! We made you dinner."

"You did?" Confused, Callie's eyes moved to Arizona's face, searching for further explanation. "What's the occasion?

Arizona blushed. "Well, you had a long day today. So we thought it would be nice-"

"It was Mommy's idea!" Sofia interrupted. "She said if I helped, I could watch a show after dinner."

Callie raised an eyebrow at Arizona. "Bribery?" she teased.

Embarrassed, Arizona defended, "That wasn't what I said, exactly."

Callie was obviously enjoying herself. With a playful glint in her eye, she pressed, "What exactly _did_ you say?"

"I didn't say anything!" Arizona exclaimed, laughing. "Now, go change your clothes! Dinner's on the table in five minutes."

* * *

After dinner, Sofia went into the living room to watch her show while Callie and Arizona sat in the kitchen.

Callie smiled at Arizona. "Thank you for dinner. It was great."

Arizona rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Are you done making fun of me now?"

"I wasn't making fun of you!" Callie defended. "I was flattered."

"Right," Arizona deadpanned.

"Seriously," Callie vowed, wanting Arizona to know how touching she found the sentiment. "It means a lot that you cooked for me. You haven't in a long time."

"Well…" Arizona paused. "It won't be the last time."

Callie waited for further explanation.

"I mean, it seems like you're going to live here for at least a little while longer. Right?" Arizona attempted to keep the hopefulness in her voice from totally betraying her.

"If that's okay with you," Callie quickly replied. "I don't want to overstay my welcome."

Arizona shook her head and offered Callie a smile. "You'll always be welcome here. Stay for as long as you like."

"Can I ask you a question about this place, though?" Callie prompted.

"Sure."

Callie put up a hand. "Don't get mad, okay?"

Arizona knit her eyebrows together in confusion. "I won't," she swore. "What is it?"

"Well, as an ortho surgeon," Callie began, "I've always wondered: why on earth did you buy a house with _stairs_?"

Perplexed, Arizona pressed, "What?"

"Arizona, you have a prosthetic leg and _stairs_ ," Callie clarified. "They don't go together!"

"Ohhh," Arizona nodded in understanding. Then, she turned serious. "I know," she surrendered. "You know how stubborn I've always been."

Callie chuckled. "That's true."

"Plus, I didn't think I'd live here so permanently," Arizona added in a quiet voice.

Callie's heart sped up in her chest. "Why not?"

Arizona looked down. "I just never planned to live here forever. I always hoped that you and I would find our way back to each other and make a real home together. You know? Find a house that was perfect for us both—and for Sofia."

Callie felt her body fill with warmth. Frankly, so did Arizona. She wasn't used to making grand confessions, and making them to Callie…

She felt oddly…shy. And only Callie had ever been able to make her feel that way.

"Plus," she added jokingly, "I really had no idea how annoying those stairs would be."

Callie smiled. "Inconvenient, huh? I probably should have warned you."

Arizona made a face. "I don't think you had the chance to," she admitted. "We weren't talking much back then."

"True," Callie sighed, remembering how hard she had worked to stay away from Arizona. And how hard it had been—the staying away. The burying of her feelings.

Arizona met brown eyes. "I'm glad we're talking to each other now. It was about time I stopped running from my feelings for you."

Callie nodded. "Me, too."

* * *

"Well, Kim, John," Arizona said to her pregnant patient and the man who sat beside her as she inspected her scans, "it looks like I will be able to perform the surgery on your baby. I can fix the duodenal atresia, but you should know that I also might find that he has coexisting cardiac anomalies."

"I know, I know," Kim sighed. "We've done the research. One-third of these guys also have Down syndrome and heart problems. We don't care. We're ready for anything." She turned to look at John. "Right?"

John nodded. "She's right, Dr. Robbins. We're committed to this baby." He began to stand up, gesturing toward his phone. "I'm just going to call my parents, okay?" he asked Kim. "They're going to be thrilled to hear that you can get the surgery."

Putting her hand on her belly, Kim nodded. "Sure."

John excused herself, and Arizona came to sit down in the chair beside the woman's gurney. "Are you sure about this?" she asked once more, just for good measure.

Kim nodded. "I'm sure about this baby. I know he'll have a few problems, but that's okay. He's our son already, and we'll love him and support him no matter what."

Arizona nodded in acceptance. That was all she needed to hear when parents chose to keep their babies, despite the known risks. She opted to change the subject. "So you and John…"

"Not together," Kim finished for her. "We used to be. For a long time."

Arizona just nodded, not wanting to pry into her patient's personal life—at least not into the aspects that weren't relevant to her pregnancy and fetus. "It seems like you get along great," she complimented. "You're a better team than a lot of the husbands and wives I see in here."

"Right?" Kim smiled. "That's what we realized, too. And, sure, we'll always love each other, but we're better as friends."

Arizona raised her eyebrows. "You think?"

"Absolutely," Kim vowed. "We just have too much history. We walked away from each other too many times. It's better that we just have a healthy, happy relationship as co-parents for the sake of the baby."

Arizona was considering her patient's words. "That's really enough for you?" she asked, dubious.

Kim nodded. "It was the right thing to do. It takes all the pain and confusion away."

* * *

That night, Callie and Arizona put Sofia to bed together.

"All right, kiddo," Callie began, "you all packed up for school tomorrow?"

"Yep!" Sofia chirped.

"You have your clothes picked out?" Arizona checked.

"Yep!" Sofia chirped again.

"Teeth brushed?" Callie gave Sofia a look.

Sofia laughed. "I brushed them, I promise."

Arizona smoothed Sofia's blankets, and Callie smiled. "Good." She leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Goodnight, Sof."

"'Night, Mama."

Arizona leaned down and kissed Sofia's head in the exact same spot. "Sleep tight, sweetie."

"Night, Mommy."

"We'll see you in the morning," Arizona promised as they shut her door behind them.

Downstairs, the two women sat down on the couch beside each other.

Callie exhaled a breath and closed her eyes, completely relaxed. "Good day."

Arizona looked at Callie and considered her patient's words. She loved Callie—obviously she loved Callie—but was it better to be just friends?

Arizona was confused. Who said that this time would be the last time they got together? And she was hurt. Callie had walked away before—countless times—what was to keep her from doing so again?

"Yeah," Arizona lied. "It was a good day."

Callie opened her eyes and smiled at her. "Mer called earlier and invited Sofia over for a sleepover this weekend, so I was thinking maybe you and I could go out to dinner? Bailey was talking about this great new French place, and I know you like French food, so-"

"Cal-"

"And maybe we could go to a movie after," Callie continued, gaining speed in her anxiety and excitement. "I'm sure _The Glass Castle_ will be great, or if you want to see something lighter, w-"

"Calli-"

"Or we could stay in, and I coul-"

"Callie!"

Callie stopped her rambling to look up at Arizona in surprise. "Oh. Sorry." Suddenly, she was sheepish. "I guess I just got excited." She gave Arizona her warmest smile. "You talk. I'll listen and shut up now."

Arizona pursed her lips. With Callie sitting there, looking at her like _that_ , saying the words was almost unbearable. But maybe Kim was right. And maybe being happy, healthy co-parents was the best thing they could do for Sofia and for themselves.

"I think we should just be friends."

Callie's eyes widened as she processed that. After everything they'd said to each other those past few weeks, those were the last words she expected to hear. "Oh."

Arizona bit her bottom lip, agonizing over the way Callie's previously animated face fell and over the sudden sadness in her eyes. "I just feel like...with all our history, it's probably for the best. All the pain, all the times we left each other..." She trailed off. "As friends, we can just forget all of that and support each other and take care of Sofia."

"Oh," Callie said again. She couldn't seem to form any other words. Her brain felt broken—and that wasn't the only thing.

Arizona looked at her pleadingly. She prayed that Callie wouldn't make this harder for her than it already was. "It's not that I don't want...you. I just think it's for the best if we-"

Callie put up a hand, stopping Arizona from saying anything further. "It's okay. You don't owe me an explanation."

"Please don't be mad."

"I'm not mad," Callie promised. She felt her eyes prick with tears and willed them back into her skull. "I mean, I left, right? It's not fair for me to come back and expect anything from you."

"I..." Arizona sighed. "I'm so sorry, Callie."

"Don't be." Callie attempted to smile through her tears. "Really. It's fine."

More than anything, Arizona wanted to comfort Callie—to wrap her arms around her and kiss the pain away. But she couldn't. So she didn't.

"So." Callie cleared her throat. "I guess we should get to bed."

Arizona's eyebrows furrowed. "It's only 9:30." They never went to bed before eleven.

"Yeah, I'm pretty tired," Callie lied.

Arizona nodded in acceptance. She knew Callie was reeling from this new news. So, instead of suggesting that they talk more, she demurred, "Right," as if she believed Callie's words. She could fib, too.

Callie's lips quirked up, but it was a sad attempt at a smile. "Goodnight, Arizona."

Arizona attempted to hold her eyes. "Goodnight, Callie."

* * *

"Wait, what happened?" Meredith demanded. "Why would she decide she only wants to be friends?"

Callie threw up her hands. "I don't know. I thought we were on the same page, but I can't totally blame her for deciding she doesn't want to be with me, can I?"

"You absolutely can," Meredith countered. "You two are right together. What changed her mind?"

Callie shrugged. "Maybe we just have too much history. Too much old pain."

"History is a _good_ thing," Meredith insisted. "And pain is the best teacher. Everything you did wrong before just teaches you what to do _right_ this time around."

"But what even makes you think this will be the last time?" Callie pressed, obviously in need of reassurance. "We've broken up countless time."

"Because I believe that sometimes, by some miracle, the world does something _good_ ," Meredith insisted. "And you two are supposed to be together."

"How do you know?" Callie beseeched.

"Because she's your Derek," Meredith reminded her. "She's your Cristina, too. The love of your life and your soulmate. She's your person."

* * *

"Grey!" Richard scurried over and sat down in the chair beside Meredith before anyone else could claim it. He set down his tray of food as Meredith looked up. "Any updates on our operation?"

"Ooh, yeah." Meredith took a bite of her fry. "It's not going so well."

"Why not?" Richard barked. "What happened?"

Meredith continued chewing as she spoke. "Everything was going great. I invited Sofia over for a sleepover with Zola to give Callie and Arizona a night to themselves, but then Arizona told Callie she just wanted to be friends."

"Why would she do that?" Richard demanded. "She loves Callie!"

Meredith shrugged. "I don't know, Richard, but Callie's really torn up about it. You and Bailey better do something."

* * *

Later that day, Bailey sought Arizona out in her office. "Hey, Robbins."

Arizona looked up from the paperwork she was reading. "Hey, Chief."

Bailey sat down in the chair across from her desk. "How's it going?"

Arizona looked at her in confusion, surprised by the question. "Fine..."

Bailey tried again. "How's it feel to have Callie home?"

Arizona stiffened. "Fine," she said again. "It's good to have Sofia back."

"I imagine it's nice to have Torres back, too," Bailey pressed.

Arizona kept her expression unreadable.

"Living with you, no less," Bailey added.

"That's temporary," Arizona countered.

"Sure," Bailey accepted, "but-"

"Bailey, did you need something?" Arizona interrupted. "Because I have work to do."

Bailey attempted to look insulted. "Can't a Chief just check in with her doctors?"

"It's not really your style, in my experience."

Bailey huffed, then surrendered, "I actually do have a favor to ask."

"What is it?" Already, Arizona was suspicious.

"Torres has a surgery right now, and I think she could use some extra support in the gallery."

Instantly, Arizona was all ears. "Why? What's the surgery? Is she okay?"

Bailey held her eyes. "Knee replacement."

"Knee replacement?" Arizona laughed. "She doesn't need me. Callie could do one in her sleep."

"I know," Bailey defended, "but I heard she was having a bad day."

Arizona pursed her lips. She knew that was likely true and that it was her fault.

Bailey could see that Arizona felt guilty, and she preyed on that. "After everything you two have been through, I know it would mean a lot to her if you were there."

Arizona crossed her arms. "Are _you_ going?"

Bailey nodded. "We can go together."

* * *

As she drove home that afternoon after work, all Callie could think about was how she had seen Arizona sitting in the gallery during her knee replacement surgery earlier that day.

 _What was she doing there?_ she wondered.

It was confusing. Just the night before, Arizona had declared that she only wanted to be friends. And, then, there she was, supporting Callie during her surgery the way she had when they had first started dating.

What made everything more confusing was the knowledge that Arizona didn't see them as only friends. She loved Callie. Callie knew that. Arizona had made that clear.

 _Maybe she's just scared_ , Callie decided. _But I'm scared, too. So why not get through the fear together?_

* * *

As Arizona drove home later that night, all she could do is berate herself. _Why am I so scared?_ she wondered.

She knew she had rejected Callie because of that fear. Nevertheless, that knowledge alone wasn't enough to change her mind about them being just friends.

Even seeing Callie in surgery that day hasn't been enough to change her mind. Arizona had been in awe—as she was every time she saw Callie work—but still.

 _We're better as just friends_ , she decided. _It's for the best._

* * *

"Bailey." Richard stood with his arms crossed in the chief's office. "I heard that Robbins was in Torres's gallery today. You better update me on their progress."

"There's no progress!" Bailey cried, obviously unhappy. "I can't believe Robbins said she wanted to be just friends."

"I know," Richard sighed. "What was she thinking?"

"I don't even think they _can_ be friends," Bailey acknowledged under her breath.

Richard laughed in agreement. "Those two will be friends as soon as a fish rides a bicycle. There's a reason things were so awkward between them for so long."

"Damn right," Bailey decided. "So what should we do now?" she asked her mentor.

"Just keep pushing them together, Bailey," Richard advised. "They'll realize soon enough that they can't be friends."

"You think?"

"Miranda, you know they're in love with each other," Richard insisted. "Even a small love can't be concealed. Much less theirs."


	5. Chapter 5

**I hope this chapter is enough for you all to forgive me for the drama in the last one. It's been a long time coming!**

 **Also, I'm about to go on vacation and won't have my laptop, so I'll see you in two weeks! I'm sorry that you won't get any updates for a while. But I am passing through Seattle, so hopefully I'll get a little inspiration there! :)**

 **Anyway, as always I appreciate (and, honestly, LIVE FOR) reviews. Thanks to everyone who leaves meaningful feedback. I love you!**

* * *

When Arizona got home, Sofia was already asleep, and the door to the guestroom was already shut, even though it wasn't even ten yet.

With a disappointed sigh, Arizona changed into sweats and strode back downstairs to read the paper. She had gotten used to spending her evenings talking to Callie, and immediately she felt lonely. Flipping through the _New York Times_ on her iPad only compounded her unhappiness as she read about the president's latest actions in absolute horror.

Hearing Arizona come home, Callie attempted to decide whether or not to brave the downstairs and a conversation with Arizona. Part of her dreaded the mere idea and wanted to avoid Arizona at all costs. It hurt too much.

But Meredith had said that their convoluted history was a _good_ thing because it allowed them to learn from their mistakes. Callie acknowledged that, in the past, too much had gone awry due to their poor communication.

With a sigh, she decided to be brave. She opened the guestroom door and began to make her way downstairs.

* * *

Despite herself, Arizona couldn't help but smile when she spotted Callie standing in the doorway of the kitchen. "Hey."

Callie couldn't help but smile back, despite her own unease. "Hey." She walked toward Arizona. "How was work?"

Arizona set down her iPad, giving Callie her full attention. "It was good. Not too busy. I liked watching your surgery earlier."

Callie's eyebrows furrowed as she sat down at the counter. "Yeah. I was surprised to see you there."

"Bailey said you were having a tough day and needed support, so she urged me to go. And I know it was probably my fault that you had a tough day…" Arizona looked down, obviously regretful. "So I hope that my being in the gallery didn't upset even you more."

"It didn't," Callie assured her. "It was a pleasant surprise."

"I love watching you work. It was probably the best part of my day," Arizona admitted earnestly.

Callie's lips curled up. "Yeah?"

Arizona nodded.

"Well, thank you," Callie paused, "… _friend_." She had attempted to say that in a funny tone and in good humor, but it came out just sounding forced and awkward. She immediately regretted even trying, especially when she saw Arizona's face fall.

"Callie…" Arizona began. She could see how much she'd hurt Callie, and that killed her.

"Sorry." Callie looked down. "It was supposed to be a joke."

Arizona offered a sad smile. "It wasn't your best."

Callie sighed. "If you want to be friends, though, I'm in," she declared. She forced some optimism into her voice. "I'm a great friend."

Arizona chuckled at her attempt at being chipper. "I'm a great friend, too."

"Perfect," Callie declared. "There you have it. We're going to be great friends."

She and Arizona looked at each other and, slowly, the smile faded from Callie's lips. She ran a hand through her hair. "Just maybe...not today," she offered quietly. "Maybe not tomorrow, either."

Arizona exhaled a long breath. She sounded more than exhausted. She sounded as if she had just lived one hundred lives, each miserable in its own way. "You need time," she translated.

"Yeah," Callie exhaled. "I mean, I finally admitted to myself that I've spent almost a decade being in love with you. I think even when I was with Penny, I…" She trailed off. "The point is, it's going to a little while to stop."

Arizona nodded. That she understood. She had always been in love with Callie. She had never even questioned that. "For me, too."

* * *

At work, Callie and Arizona were noticeably distant.

Bailey strode into Arizona's office with her arms crossed.

Arizona barely looked up from her writing. "Bailey, you're here again."

"I am," Bailey confirmed. "How are you?"

"I'm fine," Arizona grouched.

"No, you're not," Bailey countered. "I can normally count on you to be perky sunshine Barbie, but you're in a bad mood."

Arizona scowled at her.

"Does this have to do with Callie?" Bailey asked knowingly.

"No," Arizona lied.

"Robbins, I heard what happened between you two," Bailey soothed.

Arizona narrowed her eyes. "Who told you?"

"No one," Bailey fibbed. "I'm the chief. I know everything."

Arizona laughed. "Of course."

"You're scared," Bailey stated. It wasn't a question. "That's why you want to be just friends."

Arizona shrugged. That was part of it, maybe.

"Can I offer you a chiefly piece of wisdom?"

Arizona exhaled a breath. "Sure," she surrendered.

Bailey fixed her with a serious look. "The only thing my fear has ever brought me is pain."

* * *

In the days that followed, interactions between Callie and Arizona continued to be awkward. They got along fine, but they limited conversation. And they avoided each other whenever they could.

Being just friends was harder than Arizona had thought it would be.

At dinner, it was Sofia who tried to break the tension. "Mama, Mommy…" she began.

Callie and Arizona looked up.

"What is it, kiddo?" Arizona asked.

"At school today, we talked about family traditions," Sofia continued. "And Kevin said his family goes to church every Sunday. And Morgan said her family works in a soup kitchen every Thanksgiving."

"What did you say we do, Sof?" Callie wondered as she took a bite of her salad.

"Well, I actually decided that we should add a new tradition," Sofia informed them.

"And what tradition would that be?" Arizona asked, prepared for their daughter to say _cake and ice cream every night!_ or something equally as indulgent.

"Movie nights every Friday!" Sofia exclaimed. "Because I love movies, and they give us the chance to spend time together, so that's good, too."

Callie and Arizona looked at each other from across the table. Both knew that, in a few years, Sofia would be far less interested to spend time with them. They knew the movie night tradition wouldn't last forever, so they both wanted to take advantage of it for as long as they could.

"I think that's a great idea," Callie complimented.

"Me, too," Arizona agreed. "We always love to spend time with you."

Sofia beamed.

* * *

"Dude, what's wrong with you?" Alex finally demanded of Callie one day. He had seen her sulk around for days.

"What?" Callie looked up. "Oh. Nothing," she lied.

Alex softened his tone. "Do you miss Blake and New York?"

That managed to make Callie chuckle. "No." Then, she sighed. "I miss Arizona," she admitted.

"Aren't you living with her?" Alex asked, confused.

Callie nodded. "I mean, I _miss her_ miss her," she hinted. "And, anyway, we're not talking much these days."

Alex gave her a sympathetic smile, then offered, "Well, know that if you're missing her, she's missing you, too."

Callie's eyebrows furrowed. "What makes you think that?"

Alex shrugged. "I know her. And she always misses you."

* * *

"Richard, help me!" Arizona cried as she paced back and forth in her office a few days later. "I _can't_ just stop loving her!"

"Of course you can't," Richard agreed.

Arizona turned to him. "What did you do when you decided to stop being with Ellis Grey?" she wondered. "How long did it take for the feelings to go away?"

Richard took a bite of his sandwich. "They didn't."

Arizona fell onto the couch and put her face in her hands. "What am I supposed to _do_?"

"Kiss her?"

Arizona looked up and scowled at him. "Because _that_ would be friendly," she sassed.

"It's not _supposed_ to be friendly," Richard insisted. He set down his lunch on the coffee table and, in a father-like fashion, he rested his hand on her back. "It'll all work out, Robbins," he promised. "What's meant to happen will happen. Just be patient."

"Are you saying I'll stop being in love with her soon?" Arizona asked dubiously.

Richard shook his head. "No."

Arizona's eyebrows descended.

"I don't think the love is going away anytime soon."

Arizona frowned. "You're not helping."

"Yes, I am," Richard insisted. "I'm telling you exactly what I told Callie when she first came back: listen to your heart."

* * *

The following week, Arizona still hadn't heeded Richard's advice, but at least things between her and Callie were more functional. In fact, they even chose to drive to Sofia's parent-teacher conference together.

As they shuffled into the third grade classroom, they were greeted by a wiry-looking man with an untucked shirt and bright eyes. "And you must be Ms. Torres and Ms. Robbins!"

Callie and Arizona smiled. "That's us."

"Take a seat, take a seat!" Mr. Martin gestured toward the two child-sized chairs that sat in front of his desk.

"So," he began once they had gotten acquainted. "The goal of this meeting is to tell you about Sofia's academic progress and how she's doing in general."

Callie and Arizona nodded.

"I understand that she spent last year in New York, and you should know that she has reacclimated beautifully. She's friends with almost everyone in the class—save a few boys—and, a few weeks ago, she saw some kids bullying a younger girl and stood up for her on the playground. I've seen the two of them play together during recess, too."

Callie and Arizona smiled, obviously proud.

"Academically, she's advanced in math and English but has a harder time with science. She loves reading. She's learning multiplication well. Oh!" Suddenly remembering something, he fished through a huge folder to find a painting Sofia had made.

He slid it in front of Callie and Arizona. "She's good at art, too."

Callie and Arizona inspected the painting with wide eyes.

"What is this?" Arizona asked.

"I asked the kids to paint their dreams for the future," Mr. Martin explained. "A few of the girls painted themselves as princesses in castles, a few painted themselves flying. One of her classmates painted himself as Wonder Woman." He chuckled.

"And Sofia painted us," Callie breathed.

"That's right," Mr. Martin confirmed. "When I asked her about it, she said," he looked at his notes, "it was of the three of you, 'all living in a big new house together with a dog, a cat, and chickens, and me as a veterinarian and a writer on the side.'" The man smiled. "I always love it when kids talk about having multiple careers. I can barely handle one."

Callie and Arizona chuckled respectfully, but their eyes were fixed on the painting. Sofia's painting was abstract and childish—she was no Botticelli—but one thing was clear. She had without a doubt painted Callie and Arizona… _kissing_.

And that was part of her dream, too: not only that the three of them would move into a big house full of animals, but that her moms would be together.

* * *

After Sofia went to bed that night, Callie and Arizona both found themselves in the kitchen, wanting to talk.

"You want some tea?" Arizona offered.

Callie nodded. "Thank you."

With their mugs in hand a few minutes later, they made their way to the couch in the living room and sat down.

They were silent at first. Callie watched Arizona sip her tea, and Arizona watched Callie fidget nervously.

Finally, Arizona sighed. "Callie, just spit it out."

Callie looked up at her in surprise, then pursed her lips. "You're not going to like it," she warned her.

Arizona shrugged. "That's okay," she coaxed. "I want to hear what you have to say."

Callie set down her tea on the coffee table and tucked one leg beneath the other to buy herself a little time. Then, she met Arizona's eyes. "I think we've walked away from each other enough," she decided. "I think now it's time for us to come back to each other."

Arizona felt her heartbeat accelerate.

"And I don't want to be friends with you. Not _just_ friends," Callie clarified. "I don't think that's the best thing for this family. I think Sofia proved that tonight."

Arizona nodded in acceptance—but not necessarily in agreement. Not yet.

"You still disagree?" Callie pressed.

Arizona lifted her hand to her face, looking like she was ready to rip it off. "I don't know."

"Arizona, come on," Callie pleaded. "Tell me what you're thinking. Then I'll tell you what I'm thinking, and we can find a solution."

Arizona shook her head. She couldn't find the words. She didn't know how to explain herself. All she knew was that she loved Callie and she was scared. As usual. "I want to talk it out with you, but I don't even really _know_ what I'm thinking," she admitted.

"So tell me what you _do_ know," Callie suggested, softening her voice.

"I know that I don't want to be friends, either," Arizona admitted.

Callie's lips bloomed into a smile. "Really?"

Arizona nodded, still utterly serious. "I mean, not forever, anyway," she amended. "I don't think I could."

Callie's heart sped up. "You don't?"

Arizona almost smiled. How did Callie still not have any idea how irresistible she was? "Not with how much I want you. I don't even know how I've managed to bury how much I want you for as long as I have."

Callie was immediately excited by Arizona's seductive confession, and she altered her position to squeeze her legs together. "Oh," she gulped.

"But this is it, Callie," Arizona continued. "I can't lose you again. I can't have our relationship… _break_ again."

"Our marriage only broke because it wasn't solid," Callie countered in a whisper.

"Yeah," Arizona accepted. "So we need to build something better."

"Okay," Callie began after a moment of silence. "So…just to make sure we're on the same page: we're in love with each other."

Arizona nodded.

"And you want us to be together at some point?" Callie checked.

Again, Arizona nodded.

"Like, romantically?" Callie continued. "As wives?"

Arizona licked her lips. "I want that more than anything."

"But we're going to become friends first. We're going to build a solid foundation and go slow?"

Again, Arizona nodded, suddenly feeling free and happy and hopeful and _alive_. She had been wrong about being just friends. Instead, the way to forget the pain and become happy, healthy co-parents was to be together—but to do it slowly and responsibly. To do it right.

* * *

On Friday, they initiated their official movie night tradition.

"Mama! Mommy!" Sofia called from the living room. "What should we see?"

Callie strode in from the kitchen with Arizona on her heels.

"What are our options?" Arizona asked.

" _The Secret Garden_ , _Mulan_ , _Charlie and the Chocolate Factory_ , or _The Sound of Music_?"

"Hmm…" They considered that.

"I vote for _Charlie and the Chocolate Factory_ ," Callie decided.

"That's the one I was gonna choose, too!" Sofia exclaimed.

"Put it in, sweetie," Arizona suggested. "That's a great choice."

As Sofia put the DVD into the player, Arizona grabbed the remote and sat down in an armchair. She didn't completely trust herself to sit on the couch with Callie…in the dark…with a blanket over them…and stay friends who were taking things _slow_. The night always made her more less careful. Not reckless, per se, but _looser_.

Relieved, Callie sat on the couch. As much as she wanted to sit beside Arizona—she always wanted to be near Arizona—she didn't completely trust herself. So sitting separately was certainly safer.

But as soon as Sofia turned around, she pouted out her lower lip. "Mommy, you can't sit there!" she began. "We should all sit together!" She grabbed Arizona by the hand and began pulling her toward the couch.

With a sigh, Arizona surrendered to Sofia's desires and sat on the couch. As she got comfortable, she felt her arm briefly brush Callie's, and she shivered.

After the movie ended and Sofia went upstairs to bed, Callie and Arizona remained on the couch—albeit a few more inches apart, now that Sofia wasn't hogging half the space.

Callie poured them each another glass of wine and handed Arizona her glass.

Arizona smiled. "Thanks. What did you think of the movie?"

"Better than the last time I saw it," Callie admitted. "I think I tried to see it in theaters with a friend when it first came out, but I had an awful migraine. I ended up leaving early because I needed to lie down in a dark room somewhere, alone.

"Ouch." Arizona winced in sympathy. "I forgot about your migraines."

Callie sighed. "I had to cancel so many plans with Penny because of them. Drove her crazy."

Arizona's eyebrows furrowed. "I don't remember them ever being so bad that you had to cancel plans when we were together."

"That's because I didn't," Callie confessed. "You're the only person I ever wanted to see when I had a headache." She blushed a little, then added, "That sounds bad, but it's a compliment."

"Really?" Arizona found that…oddly flattering.

Callie nodded. "Yeah," she breathed. "You always made them hurt less, somehow. And not just by making out with me," she joked, "though that helped."

Arizona laughed, and Callie smiled at the sound. "That also helped," she added, referring to the blonde's smile. "And your presence, in general," she confessed.

Arizona looked deeply into Callie's eyes. "You felt it, too, then?" she wondered in a whisper.

Callie matched her quiet voice. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know," Arizona stalled, suddenly embarrassed. "I always felt so… _right_ around you. Like the world was brighter. Along with some sort of compulsive feeling that I needed to be touching you at all times or I would explode." She chuckled. She knew that sounded ridiculous, but it was true.

Callie bit her bottom lip. "I felt that." And she felt it right then, too. So, without thinking, she reached out and tucked a piece of hair behind Arizona's ear.

Arizona stiffened at the tender touch. "Callie…" she began uneasily. "What are you doing?" She knew that if Callie touched her, there would be no stopping what came next. That would immediately put an end to their going slow, to their _just friends_ status.

On one hand, she was determined to take things slow. _Painfully_ slow, maybe. On another, she was human, and she knew she would have trouble denying Callie. Especially when she wanted her so much.

Callie quickly dropped her hand to her lap. "Sorry. I'm just…" She looked down, laughing at herself a little. "I couldn't help myself."

Arizona exhaled a shaky breath. Suddenly, she felt very, very hot. Stiflingly so. She grabbed their empty wine glasses from the coffee table, stood up, and headed for the kitchen. She just needed space.

Callie stood up, too, and followed Arizona to the kitchen. She watched as the blonde rinsed their glasses in the sink. "Arizona…" she began. "Come back to the couch so we can talk some more. I'm sorry. I won't touch you again. I promise."

Arizona shut off the water, but she refused to turn to Callie, fearing that she'd stalk over to her and kiss her the second she looked at her face. Instead, she focused on the tiny bit of water that remained in a glass, swirling it around and around. Finally, she whispered, "Don't…be sorry. It's not that I don't want you to touch me."

Callie felt her heart thump. She was glad that _taking it slow_ was hard for Arizona, too.

Arizona set down the glass and forced herself to turn around. She leaned against the counter, and Callie watched as she swallowed—hard. "I just don't want to rush this. It matters too much to me. I don't want to get carried away."

Callie took a step closer. "I won't let us get carried away," she vowed.

Arizona held her eyes, still fearful. "Callie…"

"Please?" Callie took a step closer. Two steps. Three. She was close enough that she could smell Arizona. "I want to touch you." She expelled a breath in one short, stupefied laugh. "God, I'm dying to touch you."

Arizona felt her heart pounding in her chest, and all at once she couldn't breathe. She couldn't deny Callie anymore, either. Not when she too was dying for Callie to touch her.

Callie lifted her hand in the air. "Can I please just touch you…here?" She brought her hand to Arizona's face, holding her cheek with a feather-light touch.

Arizona shut her eyes, trembling with desire, and in response to the gravity of the moment.

Slowly, Callie began smoothing the lines on Arizona's face with her thumb. "Are you okay?" she worried in a whisper. Maybe she had pushed too far…

Arizona opened her eyes and nodded. She reached up to rest her hand on Callie's.

As their skin touched, Callie felt a tremor run through her. Her breath came out in a rush. No, it had never been like this with anyone else. Only with Arizona.

"Callie?" Arizona exhaled.

Callie could hardly breathe, much less reply. Instead, she stared into Arizona's eyes, waiting.

Arizona ran her tongue over her bottom lip. Gingerly, she brought her hand to Callie's shoulder and began trailing it down her arm. She felt goosebumps line Callie's skin and stared at it in wonder.

Callie shuddered and hissed out a breath, and Arizona brought her eyes back to her face. Those chocolate brown eyes looked black in the night. "I think, maybe," Arizona cleared her throat, "we don't have to take this… _quite_ so slow."


	6. Chapter 6

**So it's 1 a.m., but Chapter 6 is here! Let me know what you think!**

* * *

"Please?" Callie took a step closer. Two steps. Three. She was close enough that she could smell Arizona. "I want to touch you." She expelled a breath in one short, stupefied laugh. "God, I'm dying to touch you."

Arizona felt her heart pounding in her chest, and all at once she couldn't breathe. She couldn't deny Callie anymore, either. Not when she too was dying for Callie to touch her.

Callie lifted her hand in the air. "Can I please just touch you…here?" She brought her hand to Arizona's face, holding her cheek with a feather-light touch.

Arizona shut her eyes, trembling with desire, and in response to the gravity of the moment.

Slowly, Callie began smoothing the lines on Arizona's face with her thumb. "Are you okay?" she worried in a whisper. Maybe she had pushed too far…

Arizona opened her eyes and nodded. She reached up to rest her hand on Callie's.

As their skin touched, Callie felt a tremor run through her. Her breath came out in a rush. No, it had never been like this with anyone else. Only with Arizona.

"Callie?" Arizona exhaled.

Callie could hardly breathe, much less reply. Instead, she stared into Arizona's eyes, waiting.

Arizona ran her tongue over her bottom lip. Gingerly, she brought her hand to Callie's shoulder and began trailing it down her arm. She felt goosebumps line Callie's skin and stared at it in wonder.

Callie shuddered and hissed out a breath, and Arizona brought her eyes back to her face. Those chocolate brown eyes looked black in the night. "I think, maybe," Arizona cleared her throat, "we don't have to take this… _quite_ so slow."

* * *

Immediately, Callie felt her body jolt at Arizona's words, but she didn't dare move her hand from her face. Instead, she took a steadying breath, silently recentering herself.

She was ready to move full-speed. She was ready for everything. So she began to lean toward Arizona, ducking her head.

Arizona's breath hitched in anticipation. She felt Callie's warm breathing against her lips as she moved closer, and she felt her eyes flutter closed...

And then, to her surprise, she felt Callie's lips graze her cheek. Not her mouth. And then that warmth was gone altogether.

She opened her eyes and looked at Callie in confusion.

Callie smiled, flattered by the desire that was so apparent in Arizona's blue eyes. She felt a certain tightening, a tingling, below the waist and knew she'd need a cold shower to calm herself. That was how strong the want was.

Arizona still looked confused as she waited for an explanation. She had expected Callie to be thrilled by this idea of moving faster in terms of their physical relationship. She had expected Callie to take full advantage. She _wanted_ Callie to take full advantage.

But she hadn't taken advantage, so Arizona decided to take the lead herself. She grabbed Callie by the back of her neck and pulled her in closer, with every intention to kiss her long and hard and until neither of them could breathe.

Callie's hands found a slim waist, but instead of pulling her in, she used her hold on Arizona to maintain the little space that remained between them. "Wait."

Arizona drew back, concerned now, and maybe even a little hurt. She attempted to read Callie's expression. "Do you…not want to?"

"No," Callie exhaled a hard breath, appalled that Arizona could even think that for a second. "I mean," she backtracked, "no, that's not it. I mean, _god_ , I want to. I _so_ want you-"

"Trust me, I'm there, too," Arizona promised, her voice breathy. She offered Callie a dazzling smile to assure her of that truth. But she still felt those strong hands holding her back, keeping them apart. "Calliope," she breathed. "Tell me what you're thinking."

Silent, Callie's eyes caressed her face, and Arizona was reassured by the tenderness she saw in those deep chocolate browns.

Finally, Callie whispered, "I don't want this to be like last time."

Arizona's eyebrows knit together.

"I want to make sure we don't just jump back in the way we have in the past. We already know how crazy we are for each other physically. We should keep building something...deeper first."

Arizona exhaled a shaky breath. Under her invasive desire, she agreed with Callie. As much as she wanted to move full-speed ahead, she knew that if they moved at a slower speed, they would more easily be able overcome the obstacles that would surely come up no matter what.

"You're the last woman I'm ever going to be with," Callie continued, and both she and Arizona felt the terrifying and extraordinary weight of that fact. It was true. They both knew, without a doubt, that _this_ would be their last time. They had been apart for long enough.

Callie offered a shy smile. "I just…I guess I want to savor you."

Well, that certainly sobered up Arizona. Whatever mild resentment she felt toward the mature, responsible part of Callie suddenly scattered like ash.

She only felt love. And, well, lust, too. But she buried that. She offered a low chuckle. "You're trying to kill me." Every cell in her body ached to touch Callie, and to keep doing that for a long time. But she didn't.

Callie laughed and blushed, relieved to know how much Arizona wanted her, too. Then, her eyes carefully probed Arizona's face. "So you're not mad?" _Most_ of Callie knew she wasn't mad, but she asked anyway—just to be sure.

This time, it was Arizona's turn to laugh. "Callie," she snorted. "I'm not mad." She reached for Callie's hand and lifted it to her lips, lowering soft lips onto smooth skin and leaving a kiss. "I love you. And, even if I _were_ mad, I'd still love you. And want you like crazy," she added.

Callie unwittingly grinned, absolutely giddy. Minute by minute, she was falling in love all over again, and it felt good.

"The waiting is worth it," Arizona swore. "And it helps to know that it's not easy for you, either."

"It's not," Callie vowed solemnly. "It's really, really not." Then, she sighed. "Should we get to bed then? Before either of us combusts or something?"

"Yeah, in our separate beds," Arizona scowled glumly. "But you're right," she accepted. "We should sleep. Big day tomorrow."

"It is?"

Arizona nodded. "Yep."

Callie furrowed her eyebrows. She hadn't known they'd made any plans. "What's on the agenda?"

Arizona offered a self-satisfied smile. "I'm going to kiss you."

* * *

The following morning, Callie felt her lips curl up as Arizona walked into the kitchen. "Good morning."

"Good morning," Arizona yawned. "Sofia?"

"Still asleep." She inspected Arizona. "How'd you sleep?" she asked conversationally.

Arizona smiled at her. "Really well," she admitted. "What about you?"

"Me, too," Callie grinned. "Better than I ever did it New York."

And if Arizona had been pettier, that implicit dig at Penny would've made her feel good, but she didn't even consider that. She was just…happy. Too happy to even think about someone so insignificant.

But as she shuffled toward the coffee pot, she saw that Callie had the morning newspaper in front of her and felt her mood sour. "Are you still looking for a place to live?"

Callie reddened. In fact, she hadn't been. She had been so caught up in everything—in Arizona—that she had forgotten entirely that she was supposed to be looking for her own place.

"Because I was thinking," Arizona began, "we could look for something together."

Callie's eyebrows flew up. "Wait, what?"

Arizona smiled at Callie's expression. "Callie, we love each other. Don't you think it makes more sense for us to look for a house we can live in together?"

"It does," Callie agreed. "Are you sure?"

Arizona nodded solemnly. "I'm sure. Besides," she joked, "it really would be easier to live in a house with no stairs."

Callie's answering smile was blinding. "Are we seriously going to get a house together? _Now_?"

"Why not?" Arizona exclaimed. "We can find something perfect for us both. Somewhere to grow old together."

Callie's cheeks hurt as she began flipping through the paper in search of the real estate section. "All right. A single-story house. No stairs. You got it."

Just then, Sofia walked into the room with bed hair, looking like the undead.

Arizona smiled, and she walked over to wrap an arm around her. "Good morning, beautiful," she sang.

Sofia looked up at her. "Can I go watch cartoons?" she asked hopefully.

Arizona turned toward Callie conspiratorially. "Mama, what do you think?"

"I think that sounds great, as long as we can watch with you."

"Yes!" Sofia cheered because, really, she was getting the best of both worlds. TV time _and_ time with the two people she loved and admired most.

Arizona toasted and jammed a few slices of bread for herself and for Sofia, and then she joined her family on the couch with breakfast.

As Sofia sat between them, fixated on the _Tom & Jerry_ rerun, Callie peeked over her head and caught Arizona's eye. She offered her a sweet smile and, before she could psych herself out, she lifted her arm, coming to rest her hand on Arizona's back.

Arizona leaned back into the touch, and they spent the next hour like that: curled up on the couch as a family.

* * *

After dinner that night, Callie and Arizona allowed Sofia to indulge in some chocolate ice cream, and almost immediately they regretted it.

Their always-energetic girl became downright _hyper_ , giggling and hopping around even though it was ten o'clock at night and her moms were trying to read the paper in peace.

"Mommy?" she prompted.

Arizona looked up. "Sof…?"

Sofia grinned. "Do gorillas have birthdays?"

Arizona choked back an amused snort. Then, she attempted to think of an honest answer. "Well, they technically have birthdays, since they're born on a certain day. But I don't think they have parties the way our species does."

"Oh." Sofia turned to Callie. "Mama?"

Callie gave her a look. "Sof?"

"If I lose a tooth and drop it in your cell phone will it go through the wires and bite someone's ear?" She giggled, pleased with her own silliness.

Callie smiled, obviously endeared. "I don't think that's how it works, sweetie."

Sofia turned back to Arizona and began tapping her shoulder incessantly. "Mommy?"

Attempting to bite back her smile, Arizona ignored her and continued reading.

"Mommy!" Sofia whined, tapping harder.

" _What_?" Arizona demanded with a laugh.

"Who invented water?"

"No one invented it, Sof."

Sofia asked the next question that popped into her head. "Do the years ever run out?"

"No," Arizona answered simply. "Unless you're alive, that is."

"What happens at the end of numbers?" Sofia pressed, bouncing up and down even as she sat.

Callie answered that one. "There's no end, Sofia. There's just infinity."

"And then there's googol!"

"Is that a real number?" Callie pressed. It had never _sounded_ real. Who named a number _googol_?

"Uh huh!" Sofia insisted. "It's _really_ big."

Arizona shook her head. "It's not as big as infinity," she argued.

Sofia bit the inside of her lower lip as she considered her next question, and Callie couldn't help but smile at how much the action made her look like Arizona.

"Do you think I could fall asleep while standing on my head?"

Callie offered something between a chortle and a groan. "Honey, I'm not sure you could fall asleep anywhere right now. You need some sleep, though. How about you go head up to bed?"

"Nooo," Sofia pouted. "I want to stay here with you."

Always the peacekeeper, Arizona grabbed a pillow, laid it over her legs, and patted it with her hand. "Lie down and rest then, okay? You can stay down here for a few more minutes."

Sofia easily agreed, stretching out with her head on Arizona's lap and her fuzzysock-clad feet on Callie's thighs. She closed her eyes.

"Good girl," Callie cooed in a soothing voice.

Arizona's fingers instantly began running through Sofia's silky hair, knowing the rhythmic caresses would put her to sleep in mere minutes.

She turned to face Callie. "You still owe me something, you know," she whispered, her voice both playful and accusatory.

Callie laughed as she grabbed a blanket from the back of the couch and laid it over Sofia's little body. "I haven't forgotten, _trust me_." In fact, all day, she hadn't been able to think of much else _besides_ their upcoming kiss.

As Sofia's breaths became slow and even, indicating she was asleep, Arizona looked down and smiled, her fingers still running through soft hair. "I'm not sure I can reach you right now, though," she lamented.

"Do you want to look at houses some more?" Callie asked, searching for a distraction. "Or," she bit her lip, "did you change your mind?"

Arizona's eyebrows knit together. "You don't think I want to live with you?"

"No, I just…" Callie trailed off. "I don't know," she blushed. "I just wanted to be sure."

Arizona looked at her. "Are you going to change your mind about _me_?"

Callie didn't even need to consider that. "Never."

Arizona's lips quirked up. "There you go. I'm equally as sure about you."

"Okay," Callie reached for the paper to find the real estate section again, since they hadn't had time to look that morning. "So we're looking for a house with no stairs. What else do you want?"

Arizona considered that. "At least two bedrooms. Enough room on the front porch for a bench where we can sit and watch the world go by."

Callie smiled at the thought of the two of them as retired old ladies, sitting on a swinging porch bench and waving at all the neighborhood kids while they sipped their morning tea. "What else?"

Arizona shrugged. That's it," she said simply. "That's enough. I don't really care about anything else. Anything you want."

"Arizona, come on," Callie pouted. "This is our _dream_ house—the house we should've gotten last time. One that is well-suited to us both."

"Callie, you don't get it," Arizona breathed.

Callie raised her shoulders, looking helpless. "So tell me," she suggested.

Instinctively, Arizona lifted her hand to tuck a piece of hair behind Callie's ear, and her hand lingered there. "I don't care so much about what our house looks like," she admitted, "because the only home I've ever really known is you. The only home I've ever _wanted_ ," she added.

Callie's heart was full to the brim with love at that confession. She was speechless.

"What about you?" Arizona wondered, attempting to draw a little attention away from herself. "What does your dream house need?"

Callie forced herself to recover and answer the question. "A big kitchen," she decided. "And," she smiled, "a backyard big enough for a chicken coop."

Arizona blinked at her—in surprise, in awe, and…something else. She was taken by surprise by the sudden prick she felt behind her eyes, and she willed the joyful tears not to fall. Her voice came out as a whisper. "Is this really happening?"

Callie mimicked her quiet tone. "Is _what_ happening?" she pressed.

Arizona offered a slow smile, completely content. No—jubilant. Overcome with so much feeling, and not fearing it or avoiding it or feeling overwhelmed by it but embracing it with open arms. She looked down at Sofia for a moment and then met Callie's playful, expectant eyes. "Am I really about to get everything I've ever wanted?"

Callie offered a small nod, equally overcome with feeling. "Yeah," she breathed, her eyes fixed on Arizona's face. "We both are."


	7. Chapter 7

**Short chapter, but I figured I owed you guys an update! Can't promise when the next one will come - I'm in Europe for the next few weeks! Hoping to regain interest in this story, though. I love our girls!**

* * *

 _Arizona blinked at her—in surprise, in awe, and…something else. She was taken by surprise by the sudden prick she felt behind her eyes, and she willed the joyful tears not to fall. Her voice came out as a whisper. "Is this really happening?"_

 _Callie mimicked her quiet tone. "Is_ _what_ _happening?" she pressed._

 _Arizona offered a slow smile, completely content. No—jubilant. Overcome with so much feeling, and not fearing it or avoiding it or feeling overwhelmed by it but embracing it with open arms. She looked down at Sofia for a moment and then met Callie's playful, expectant eyes. "Am I really about to get everything I've ever wanted?"_

 _Callie offered a small nod, equally overcome with feeling. "Yeah," she breathed, her eyes fixed on Arizona's face. "We both are."_

* * *

Ever so slowly, they began inching closer, wanting to close the distance between them, to show each other how they felt. They both wanted to take their time, to savor each other, but they also wanted to kiss. Badly.

Arizona forced her stare to break from Callie's lips, instead meeting her in the eye as if to silently ask permission. Permission that Callie readily granted, her eyes fluttering shut as she leaned in closer, brushing Arizona's lips with hers.

Immediately, Arizona sighed into her mouth, attempting to hold back a moan. She lifted her hand to the back of Callie's neck, demanding that she stay close, as she brought their lips together again. This time, the contact wasn't gentle—more needy, the way she captured full lips, sucked a bottom lip between her teeth.

"Arizona," Callie breathed into the kiss, working to move her hand down the blonde's waist, as Sofia still lay between them.

Arizona brushed Callie's tongue with hers, deepening the kiss, and—this time—it was Callie who groaned.

After another few seconds, Arizona pulled back, her eyes fixed on Callie's. Those chocolate browns were so soft—so earnest—as she took her in, nothing but love in her eyes.

Arizona chuckled softly, shaking her head.

Callie's eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

"There is nothing in the world that compares to kissing you," Arizona decided.

Callie beamed, then nudged her shoulder. "I could say the same for you." She leaned in once more to peck Arizona's lips. Then, she nodded down toward Sofia. "We should get her to bed."

Arizona nodded in agreement, and Callie hefted the 9-year-old up into her arms and began walking toward the stairs so she could lay her in bed.

When she came back downstairs, she caught Arizona putting on her prosthesis. She crossed her arms. "See?"

Arizona looked up, turning to face her.

Callie smiled. "If you didn't have stairs, you could just roll into your bedroom and wouldn't have to deal with all that."

"I know," Arizona lamented, pulling down her pantleg and working to stand up.

Callie reached out to touch her arm and then abruptly changed her mind, her hand hanging in midair.

Arizona inspected her face. "What's wrong?"

Callie exhaled a tremulous breath. "I…there was a reason I wanted to move slow."

Arizona repeated what Callie had said earlier. "To _savor_ me."

Callie chuckled. "Well, that's part of it. But, also, it's always scared me—how much I want you. So I guess I was scared. I still am."

Arizona nodded, instantly understanding.

"The constant compulsion to touch you," Callie continued, "it's…more than an itch. We talked about this before—it's just that, when I'm close to you and not touching you, it's literally _painful_."

"Yeah," Arizona mused. "It always felt like your body was just an extension of mine—or mine an extension of yours. All those years, the not being able to touch..."

Callie swallowed the rock in her throat. "It was excruciating. For me, too." Unable to hold back, she lifted her hand, tucked a lock of hair behind Arizona's ear. Her hand shook.

"Callie..." Arizona breathed. "I can't-" Without finishing her thought, she stepped forward into Callie's space. Even with a few inches still between them, she could feel the heat rolling off Callie's body.

Callie's breath sped up. "We wanted to go slow," she reminded them both.

"I know." Arizona took another step forward and dropped a soft kiss on Callie's cheek. Her lips lingered as she breathed in her scent.

Unable to help it, Callie's hands found her waist, needing to steady herself against her want.

Arizona pulled back. "Let's sleep."

They headed upstairs to the bedrooms and then paused in front of their respective doors.

"I'll miss you," Callie half-joked, her head suddenly full of images of them wrapped up in each other in sleep. How it had been before.

Arizona smiled softly. "I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

The next day, at work, Callie and Arizona were back to their old selves—or at least their public selves, those that weren't consumed with desire.

As Callie was getting her lunch, she spotted Arizona across the cafeteria, sitting with Alex. She lifted her hand in a small wave. Arizona smiled and waved back.

Beside her, Bailey lifted an eyebrow. "You don't have to eat lunch with me, you know."

Callie turned to Bailey, remembering that she was there, that they'd been mid-conversation a few seconds before. "No, I want to!" She shook her head. "Sorry. I just got…distracted."

Bailey's lip curled up. "By Arizona." It wasn't a question.

Callie blushed a little.

"So what's happening between you two?" Bailey pressed.

Callie pursed her lips, weighing whether or not to tell Bailey the truth. Finally, she decided she couldn't keep it a secret—she didn't want to. "We're getting back together."

Bailey's eyebrows flew up and she swatted Callie's arm affectionately. "Torres! Congratulations! So you're together now?"

"Well, not quite. I mean, we are, but we're trying not to rush it, you know?" Together, they sat down at a small table. "We've rushed back into things before, and it obviously ended up not working out."

Bailey studied her. "You think it might not work out again this time?"

Instinctively, Callie's eyes flew across the large cafeteria and landed on Arizona's face. She was laughing at something Alex said and then looked up—feeling Callie's stare—and caught her eye. Her face immediately softened into a smile, and Callie couldn't help but grin back.

Then, she turned her attention back to Bailey with renewed energy. "I think we're going to be just fine."


	8. Chapter 8

**Let me know what you think!**

* * *

That night, Callie and Arizona carpooled home from work late. Sofia was already asleep, and they quickly checked on her and relieved the sitter.

As Callie shut the door behind her, she turned and saw Arizona in the kitchen.

"You want some wine?" Arizona offered, already getting two glasses out from the cupboard.

"Please."

"Long day?" Arizona guessed.

Callie chuckled darkly as she took her glass. "Aren't they always?"

Arizona smiled, following closely behind. "Sometimes long can be fun."

They collapsed on the couch and sipped their wine, Arizona's eyes fixed on Callie's face. "Did you have a tough case today?"

Callie shook her head. "No, nothing like that. I just—well, we work long days. And, usually, that's fine. But, now, I'm just there all day, wishing I could be with you instead."

Arizona's lips curled up into a smile. "Me, too."

"Really?"

"Yes, really," Arizona responded, laughing at how clueless Callie could be. "You know," she began, "we have a lot of sick days saved up. We could always take some time off."

Callie raised an eyebrow. "So we would just hang around Seattle for a few weeks, doing nothing, just you and I?"

Arizona shrugged. "Sounds like a vacation to me."

Callie was warming up to the idea. "It kind of does," she admitted.

Arizona dimpled at her. "Your replacement still has to finish up his contract, anyway. Bailey would hardly miss you."

Callie scowled. "Oh, thanks a lot."

Arizona chuckled. "Okay, fine. She'd miss you. But at least I wouldn't have to."

* * *

"Sof, we're going to be late!" Arizona exclaimed the next day.

"I'm coming!" Sofia countered, bounding down the stairs. "Where's Mama?"

"She has to go into work early, so I'm taking you to camp today. You ready?"

"Yes!" Sofia grabbed her lunch off the counter, and off they went.

* * *

Around 1p.m. that afternoon, Callie found Arizona sitting alone at a table in the cafeteria. "Hey."

Arizona smiled with closed lips, still chewing her carrot. "Hey. How's it going?"

"I've been thinking about your idea," Callie began. "About taking a little staycation."

Finished, Arizona pushed her lunch tray away. "And?"

"We should," Callie decided.

Arizona's brows shot up. "You want to?"

Callie nodded. "I want to. It's summer, so Sofia's home more, and obviously you're here, so...I think it'd be good—getting to spend some quality time together."

Arizona smiled. "Me, too."

"Yeah?" Callie checked. "You want to come tell Bailey with me?"

Arizona made a face. "Not particularly."

Callie laughed. "We'll just tell her we need five weeks. Then, we'll be back, reinvigorated."

"Deal. I have a quick appy in a few, but I should be free around three. Want to meet then?"

* * *

At 3p.m., Callie and Arizona found each other outside of Bailey's office.

"You ready?" Arizona asked.

Callie gulped. "Not really."

"She's not going to like losing two of her best surgeons—even for just a few weeks," Arizona decided.

Callie smiled at her. "You're humble, as usual."

Arizona grinned. "It's not arrogance if it's true."

"Touché."

Together, they knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Bailey called from inside.

Callie opened the door, ushering Arizona in and following right after. "Hey, Bailey," she smiled, already looking guilty.

Bailey looked up from her paperwork and frowned as soon as she saw Callie's face. "Torres, do not tell me you're leaving again."

Arizona sat down in a chair across from her desk. "Bailey, your hair looks great today."

Now, Bailey was really suspicious. "Torres, Robbins, just tell me the bad news already."

"It's good news!" Callie argued. "I mean, we think it's good." She turned to Arizona. "Right?"

Arizona nodded. "Right. And we hope you'll think it's good, too."

Bailey crossed her arms. "What is it?"

"Well," Callie began, "we're hoping to take some time off."

"You are leaving!" Bailey accused.

"Just for a few weeks!" Arizona interjected.

Bailey fixed them with a stare for a minute. Then: "You're taking time off...together?"

Callie nodded. "Yeah. It's been so long since we've spent real quality time together, and," she held her hand out to Arizona, who instantly took it, "we…want to."

Bailey's eyes immediately fell to their entwined hands, and a slow smile spread across her face. "Oh. Well, I think we can make that work. How long?"

"We were thinking...five weeks?" Arizona said.

"Done," Bailey quipped. "Starting Monday."

Callie's eyebrows flew up. "Really? That soon?"

Bailey gave them a genuine smile. She was overjoyed for her friends. "It's no problem. You two deserve some time."

When they exited her office, Callie and Arizona met each other's eyes in surprise.

Arizona scratched her head. "That went...better than expected."

Callie nodded in agreement. "I know. That was weird."

"Good, though. It'll be good."

Meanwhile, inside her office, Bailey positively _giggled_ as soon as Callie and Arizona left. Quickly, she picked up her cellphone and told everyone on the Operation Calzona groupchat the good news.

* * *

That following Sunday night, Sofia reminded her moms that—for once—neither of them had to wake up early.

Sitting on the couch, she began bouncing up and down. "Can we do something, all of us together?! Please, please, please!"

Arizona laughed, wrapping her arm around their daughter. "Sure, kiddo. What do you want to do?"

"I want to watch a movie," Sof declared. " _and_ I really want to practice my braiding, so I wanna braid both your hairs while we watch."

Callie and Arizona looked at each other and shrugged. Then, Arizona kissed the top of Sof's head. "Sounds like a fair request to me, sweetie. You want to pick the movie?"

"Yes!"

"Let me guess," Callie began. " _The Secret Garden_." She turned to Arizona, explaining, "She's been wanting to rewatch it for months now, but she said she wouldn't watch without you."

Sofia looked over at them from her spot in front of the box of DVDs and giggled. "How did you know I was going to pick that one?"

"Because I know you!" Callie laughed.

As Sofia put it into the player, she told Arizona, "Mommy, I've really been wanting to see it again, but it's your favorite, too, so I didn't wanna watch it without you. It's more fun to watch it together, I think."

Arizona smiled at her, adding, "And now Mama gets to watch with us, too."

"Yes!" Sof climbed up on the couch, directing, "Okay, Mom. I'm going to braid your hair first, so you should sit on the floor so I can reach better."

"Okay, Boss," Arizona saluted, to Sofia's glee, and situated herself on the carpet in front of Sof.

As the movie began, Arizona's eyes remained on the screen while Sofia messed with her hair.

After a few minutes, though, Sofia turned to Callie, cupping her hand around her mouth as she whispered, "Mama, can you show me how to do it again? I forget."

Callie chuckled. "Sure." She brought her hands to Arizona's hair, fingers brushing her neck, and Arizona felt her hair stand on end. Instantly, she knew these hands were no longer Sofia's, but she turned her head to check anyway.

Callie smiled at her, gently directing Arizona's head forward again to face the screen. Slowly, she began weaving blonde hair into a braid, going slow enough that Sofia could follow her movements.

Eventually, Sofia took over, her braiding a little loose but definitely proficient. She secured it with a hair tie. "Done! Mama, your turn. Mommy, you can sit up here now, if you want."

After they switched places and Sofia began running her hands through Callie's hair, Arizona whispered, "Sof, you want to give Mama two braids?"

"Oh, good idea. You give her one on that side and I'll do it on this side."

Arizona reached up, helping Sofia separate Callie's hair fairly evenly. Then, she took her half, fingers running through it. She and Sofia began braiding, and Arizona deliberately went slow, wanting Callie's pleasure to last. She recognized that there was something special about having your hair played with, especially by someone who loved you.

When she and Sofia finished, Arizona kept her hand on the back of Callie's neck, gently kneading it with her fingers. She felt Callie lean into the touch and smiled.

Sofia ran to grab a hand-mirror so she could show her moms her work after the movie ended.

"Oh, wow!" Arizona exclaimed when she caught sight of her loose braid. "This looks amazing, Sof!"

"Mine, too," Callie praised, looking at her own pigtail braids. "Good job, Sof!"

Sofia beamed.

* * *

After Sofia went to bed, Callie and Arizona settled back on the couch, and Callie reached up to let her hair loose.

Arizona raised a hand to stop her. "No, don't."

Callie looked at her curiously.

Arizona chuckled. "You look so cute."

Callie rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right."

"I'm serious!" Arizona insisted. She reached up to flip one of the braids. "Like Pippi Longstocking."

"Oh, thanks," Callie laughed, and Arizona laughed with her.

"So," Arizona finally prompted, changing the subject, "we have this week off-"

"And the next and the next and the next and the next," Callie added.

"Right," Arizona grinned. "So what should we do?"

"Anything," Callie shrugged. "Everything."


	9. Chapter 9

The following few days, Callie and Arizona mostly spent time at home, working to unpack some of the more essential things Callie had mailed back and, of course, spending extra time with Sofia.

On Thursday, Callie said, "Hey, I've heard good things about that new movie— _Midsommar_ —do you want to go tonight, maybe?"

Arizona nodded. "Sure. Would Sof like it?"

Callie made a face.

"Understood," Arizona laughed. "We'll call the sitter. And oh! We can go to that place you used to like—the theater with the couches and tables and real food that they'll serve you right there."

"Oh, yeah!" Callie remembered. "I missed that place."

Arizona smiled. "I missed going together."

Callie smiled back, her eyes gentle. "That, especially."

* * *

That night, they sat together on one of the theater's loveseats, eating their tacos as the movie began.

No more than half an hour later, they were riveted, their eyes wide and never straying from the screen.

"Oh, no," Arizona said under her breath, her hand instantly reaching for Callie's thigh and clenching it tight.

Equally nervous about what was coming, Callie wrapped her arm around Arizona, keeping her close. She dropped her other hand over Arizona's, both wanting to offer support and needing some herself.

And that was how they remained for the duration of the movie: cuddled together, both in awe of the beauty on the screen and equally appalled by the violent scenes.

* * *

When they left, Arizona prompted, "What'd you think?"

"I kind of loved it," Callie admitted. "Is that crazy?"

"No, I did, too," Arizona agreed. "Kind of disturbing, at times, but almost...in a good way."

"Yeah," Callie added. "It was a kind of interesting anthropological study. I like that it explored themes of mental illness, too."

"I know! Especially PTSD. And the protagonist wasn't especially likable, which I thought was appropriate, actually. It's not always fun or easy to be around someone with mental health issues or PTSD." She chuckled darkly. "You already know that, though."

"So do you," Callie reminded her, tucking a piece of blonde hair behind her ear.

"And it was just so pretty," Arizona added.

"I know," Callie moaned. " _So_ pretty. I need to get back to Europe."

As they pulled into the driveway, Arizona yawned.

Callie raised an eyebrow at her. "You sleepy?"

Arizona nodded. "And I know I shouldn't be, because we haven't actually done anything substantial in four days, but I still am."

Callie smiled. "No, it's valid. We're moms. We're used to going to bed at, like, nine-thirty, and it's after eleven."

Arizona laughed. "Remember when we used to go to the bar and have a bunch of drinks and go home with a stranger?"

"You always did that more than me, but I get it. Our lives now are undeniably different than they were when we first met." Callie shrugged. "Part of getting older I guess."

"Speaking of which..." Arizona began.

"Oh, no," Callie put her head in her hands.

"It's almost your birthday!" Arizona exclaimed. "In a little less than a month!"

"Yay," Callie deadpanned.

Arizona frowned at her. "You're not excited? Really?"

Callie smiled at her expression. "I don't love birthdays quite as much as you do. I am excited to get to spend it with you and Sof, though."

Arizona grinned back, promising, "We'll do something special."

* * *

On Saturday, Callie planned to take Arizona to dinner at a French restaurant—so called the most romantic restaurant in the city—but her plans were quickly foiled when Bailey called. Apparently, her replacement needed help with a surgery. Desperately.

"Torres, I'm sorry," Bailey regretted. "I know you and Arizona are taking time off. If I had anyone else, I would-"

"It's okay, Bailey," Callie assured her. "I'll come in as soon as I can. Give me forty minutes?"

"Of course. Thank you, again."

A few minutes later, Callie strode down the stairs, wearing her leather boots and swinging her purse over her shoulder.

Arizona knit her brows together. "Are we going out right now?"

"No," Callie exhaled in a heavy breath. "Bailey called. She needs me to come in for a tough surgery."

"Oh," Arizona pouted out her lower lip. "You think you'll be back in time for our reservation?"

Callie shrugged. "I hope so. If I don't make it back in time, though, we can go another night—if that's okay with you."

Arizona smiled. "Sounds good, Cal. Good luck with the surgery."

* * *

Hours and hours later—after ten—Callie finally made it home.

"Hey," Arizona smiled up from the couch.

"Hey," Callie breathed.

Arizona set down her newspaper. "That was a long surgery. How'd it go?"

Callie sat down beside her, covering her yawn with her hand. "It went well. It was fun to get to know Dr. Rogers, too. Seems like a nice guy."

Arizona's lips quirked up. "He's no you."

Callie laughed. "I know. Not the most capable surgeon in the world. But at least he's decent and pleasant to be around."

"Better than Dr. Stark," Arizona commented. "Remember when he replaced me?"

Callie made a face. "He was _really_ no you. The only thing you two had in common was your height." Then, she changed the subject. "So what did you do today?"

"Well, Sof and I got our nails done this afternoon and then made dinner together. There's leftovers in the fridge, if you're hungry." Arizona paused. "I, uh, also did something big."

Callie's brows flew up. "Oh?"

Arizona pursed her lips, carefully perusing Callie's face. "I mean, it's actually been in the works for a few days, but I finally took the plunge today. And, like I said, it's kind of a big thing, and your birthday's coming up, so-"

"Arizona," Callie began, her curiosity getting the best of her. "What did you do?"

After another minute spent searching Callie's face, Arizona turned toward the side table and picked up some papers. She handed them to Callie.

Callie took the proffered papers and inspected them. Instantly, her eyes bulged. "Two tickets to _Rome_?"

Arizona looked at her hopefully. "Surprise?"

Callie looked back, utterly bewildered. "You're serious?"

Arizona nodded. "It's only for a week, but I thought it'd be fun and romantic, maybe. And I know you've been to Italy before, but I haven't, and maybe it would be fun to explore it together."

"Without Sofia?"

"My mom and dad offered to come stay here with her," Arizona explained. "She was supposed to have camp that week, but my mom suggested a little 'Grandma and Grandpa Camp' instead. She hasn't seen Sof in over a year, so she really wanted to spend time with her."

Callie was still processing. "Your parents are coming _here_? And you and I…would go to Rome, as in…Italy?"

Arizona nodded carefully. "I told you it was a big thing. And I was worried about springing it on you. It's just that we're taking time off anyway, and…" She trailed off for a second, then asked, "Do you not want to go?"

"Are you kidding?" Callie laughed. She rubbed her hand down Arizona's arm, wanting to reassure her. "Of course I want to go to freakin' _Rome_ with you. It took me a minute to process, and I'm still kind of processing, but…" She paused. "I like surprises. And I think this is the best one I've ever had."

Arizona's eyes lit up, her expression beginning to look less stressed. "Yeah?"

Callie entwined their fingers, grinning, "Yeah."

Arizona squeezed Callie's hand, her chest tide-pooling with warmth.

"So, tell me more," Callie prompted. "What's the plan?"

"Well," Arizona began, opening the binder in which she'd organized their itinerary, "my parents will get here next Sunday, and then we'll leave early Monday morning, stop off in Atlanta, and then fly another nine hours to Rome."

Callie nodded, listening.

"And then, on our first day, we'll probably be tired and jet lagged. So we'll just explore the city on foot a bit and then get some dinner. Maybe take a nap. And then, over the course of the week, we'll also go to this great museum I heard about, to the Colosseum, the Sistine Chapel, the Vatican…" She kept talking, running through the full itinerary.

Finishing the summary a few minutes later, Arizona apologized, "That was a lot."

Callie shook her head in wonder. "Jeez. And I thought _I_ was productive today."

Arizona smiled. "Reconstructing someone's arm is pretty productive."

"Not like this," Callie argued with a laugh. "I can't believe you found us such a nice Airbnb so last minute!"

"What can I say?" Arizona joked. "I'm pretty amazing."

"Yes," Callie agreed, her eyes caressing Arizona's face. "You are."

Arizona blushed.

"It must have cost a fortune, though," Callie amended. "You have to let me help pay for it."

Arizona gave her a look. "Callie, please. I have more than enough money. And, long term, everything that's mine is yours, anyway."

"Good point," Callie conceded, her stomach filling with butterflies at the reminder that they'd be together forever.

"So what should we do tomorrow?" Arizona asked. "Since, hopefully, Rogers won't need your help on another surgery."

"I'll plan something," Callie decided. When she saw Arizona's face, she added, "A surprise you'll like. Really."

Arizona chuckled. "You know me well."

"I do. I've never forgotten anything," Callie confessed, her fingers absentmindedly tracing Arizona's hand.

"Me, neither," Arizona whispered.

Callie met her eyes. "I want to know more, though. I want to learn everything."

Arizona leaned in, leaving a lingering kiss on full lips.

Callie hummed at the contact, her eyes falling shut.

After a minute, Arizona regretfully pulled away. "You have the best taste."

Callie chuckled a little. "What?"

"Yeah. I mean, the taste of your lips, your mouth—it's my favorite thing."

"Well, I haven't brushed my teeth since this morning, so I guess this is how I know you love me." Then, realizing what she'd implied, her face blanched white.

Arizona didn't seem to resent the implication, though. How could she when it was the truth? She pecked Callie's lips one last time, grinning, "Guess so."

And, welp. There it was. Arizona had just admitted, out loud, that she loved Callie. And Callie wanted to say _I love you, too,_ but suddenly, the words caught in her throat. She was nervous about saying it again, about wearing her heart on her sleeve, about that level of vulnerability. So she stayed quiet, not telling Arizona about all the times she'd drunk white wine just for the tiniest taste of her—how, if Arizona's mouth were a river, she'd want to drown in it.

After a minute of silence, Arizona realized that Callie wasn't going to say anything—which, _okay_ , was not what she'd hoped for exactly—and she stood up, her hand disentangling from Callie's. She knew that Callie loved her. Right? Why did she need to hear it?

"Well," she began. "I'm worn out from all that planning. I'll see you in the morning, yeah?" Before Callie could answer, she began climbing the stairs toward her bedroom.

After Arizona disappeared, Callie exhaled loudly as she stood up and began climbing up the stairs behind her.

As she put on her pajamas, she heard Arizona's door click closed. She hoped Arizona didn't doubt her devotion, but maybe she did. And, regardless, Callie felt bad. If Arizona couldn't rest assured that she loved her, she knew she was doing something wrong.

She lay in bed, wishing she could just wrap her arms around Arizona—the way she'd desperately wanted to her entire year spent in New York, the way she always had.

Then, she realized, she _could_. Arizona was right there, not even thirty feet away. She pushed back her blankets, standing on the hardwood and tiptoeing past her own door toward Arizona's. She tapped on the door then opened it slightly, peeking her head in.

Arizona was awake, and she turned back to face the sound.

"Hey," Callie breathed.

"Hey."

Ever so quietly, Callie shut the door behind her. "I, um, couldn't sleep."

Arizona tried to smile. "I couldn't, either."

Callie hazarded a step closer. And closer. Her eyes stayed fixed on Arizona's face as, in a tiny voice, she asked, "Can I sleep with you?"

Arizona felt her breath shudder out at the thought. " _Yeah_." She scooted over and signaled Callie toward the bed.

Callie walked over to the bed and tucked herself beneath the blankets. As she scooted down the bed, she noticed Arizona tracking her, the whites of her eyes exquisitely white in the dark room. Callie settled in, lying on her side to face her.

"I-" they began simultaneously.

Callie smiled. "Oops. You go first."

Arizona bit the inside of her cheek. "I'm just—I'm sorry for being weird earlier and then just going to bed."

"No," Callie argued in a hard exhale. " _I'm_ sorry. For not saying anything. And not stopping you. I just got kind of tongue tied."

Arizona watched her face carefully. "What do you think brought that on?"

"You," Callie laughed, the sound breathy in their quiet. "No. Fear."

At that, a line formed between Arizona's brows, and Callie reached out to smooth it with her thumb. Eventually, she articulated, "What I feel for you scares me sometimes. The intensity of it. And then you do something like plan a trip to the City of Love or say how much you love what my mouth tastes like, and I remember that you feel the same. And that scares me, too."

Arizona nodded in understanding. "It is scary—it always has been. We don't have a lukewarm love."

"Yeah!" Callie exclaimed, pleased with Arizona's term for it. "And, with a lukewarm love, there's not a big difference if the water goes cold. The relationship can still be maintained, because it was never that great in the first place. But, with us, always starting so hot..." She trailed off, knowing Arizona too remembered all the times they'd gone cold before.

Arizona nodded, on the same page. "I'm scared, too. But being scared is okay. It means we know how much we have to lose. And we're _that_ much more likely to work hard to maintain it."

Callie's head bobbed in agreement, and then she realized, "We never would have talked like this before."

Arizona smiled. "Not saying what we meant until it was too late was always a big problem of ours."

Callie smiled back. "Not anymore, I guess."

"Does that assuage your fear at all—seeing how much we've matured, how much better we understand ourselves and each other now?"

"It helps a lot," Callie breathed. She leaned in, dropping a soft kiss on Arizona's lips, then moved her own lips down, mouthing that freckle on Arizona's jaw.

Arizona inhaled a sharp breath at the contact, and Callie pulled back with a little laugh. " _Now_ I'll be able to sleep."

Arizona turned in the opposite direction and scooted back toward Callie—the way she always had.

Smiling at the familiarity of the action, Callie edged toward her, her arm instantly wrapping around a narrow waist as if that was where it belonged. Maybe it was.

Arizona hummed in contentment, and Callie dropped a feather-light kiss on the nape of her neck, breathing in the scent of her skin, her hair...

She let out a sated sigh, pulling Arizona tighter to her, her nose still tucked against wisps of blonde hair. "You smell better than anything in the world," she murmured. "You know that?"

Half-asleep already, Arizona tangled their legs together, demanding as much contact as possible.

And, wanting to make sure Arizona heard her, Callie leaned up on her elbow to whisper in her ear. "And, for the record," she breathed, watching Arizona's eyes flutter open, "I love you, too."


	10. Chapter 10

**If you want me to keep writing, leave me a thoughtful review! They keep me going.**

 **Hope you enjoy this short lil chapter.**

* * *

"Arizona, we're going to be late!" Callie called from by the front door.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Arizona hurried toward her, dropping her suitcase by the door and then turning back to Sofia and her parents. "Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad." She kissed their cheeks. "We'll see you when we get back."

Callie followed after. "Bye, Barb! Bye, Daniel. Thank you again for taking such good care of Sofia."

Last but certainly not least, they wrapped their arms about Sofia. "Bye, sweetie." "We'll miss you so much!" "Be good for Grandma and Grandpa!"

"I will!" Sofia promised, waving to them as they headed for their cab.

Going through security and boarding their first flight was mostly harmless—save for Arizona needing to prove that she did, in fact, have a prosthetic leg. Then, in Atlanta, they had to race to their terminal, and they were still out of breath when they boarded the plane.

Callie shook her head. "This is a big airport."

"Biggest in the country, I think," Arizona remarked. "But we made it. Now we just have to sit here for nine hours."

Callie leaned back in her chair, making a show of folding her hands behind her head. "I think I can do that."

Arizona laughed. "I think we can, too." As they took off, she spread the blanket the airline had provided over their legs. She ducked her head, kissing Callie's bare shoulder.

Callie smiled at the gesture, turning her head to kiss Arizona's hair in return. "What time are we landing again?"

"It'll be 10a.m. in Rome time but 1a.m. Seattle time, so—unless we sleep a lot on the flight—we're going to feel dead. We might feel dead, regardless," Arizona added.

Callie lifted up the armrest that separated their seats, allowing them to sit closely more comfortably. She patted her shoulder. "I'm here if you need a pillow."

They tried to sleep like that for a while—Arizona's head on Callie's shoulder, Callie's head resting on Arizona's—and then started a movie on their entertainment screens and watched that for a while.

When Callie yawned, though, Arizona suggested: "Callie, why don't you stretch out a bit and try to sleep some more? We have this whole row to ourselves. Lay your head on my lap and stretch your legs out over those two seats."

"Good idea," Callie hummed. She took off her seatbelt so she could get more comfortable and lay a small pillow over Arizona's thighs. As she situated herself, Arizona spread another blanket over her body.

Callie looked up at her. "Am I smushing you?"

"No," Arizona promised, her hand smoothing back Callie's hair. "I'm good. Try to sleep." She put her earphones in and turned back to the movie.

With Arizona's fingers running through her hair—ever so softly—Callie quickly fell asleep.

An hour-and-a-half later, she woke up to Arizona still playing with her hair. Groggy, she sat up. "Were you able to sleep more?" she asked Arizona.

Arizona nodded. "A little bit. Here," she handed Callie a tray of food. "They served dinner while you were sleeping. I think it's still warm."

Callie smiled. "Thank you."

Then, they sat in silence for a while—a good indicator of how comfortable they were together. There was no need to fill the silence. They were content just to be together.

"You might want to take off your leg," Callie suggested after a few minutes of eating. "We still have another six hours on the plane. Isn't it uncomfortable?"

Arizona made a face. "Yeah, it is." She began rolling up her pant-leg. "I probably should've taken it off when we first got on. Nine hours didn't sound quite as long it is."

"I know," Callie agreed. "It's going to feel so good to move once we get off the plane."

Arizona did her best to tuck her prosthesis under her seat, and Callie said, "Okay, I have an idea to help us pass the time."

Arizona was eager for entertainment. "Tell me."

Callie grinned. "It's pretty simple, really. I ask you a question, then you ask me a question. And then it goes back and forth until we die. Or until we get bored," she laughed.

"Okay," Arizona agreed. "I'm ready."

"Hmm," Callie considered, trying to think of a question. "If you were doing karaoke, what song would you choose?"

"Well, first of all, I would never do karaoke."

Callie laughed. "I know. But if you did."

"Hmm. Maybe 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun'? Or 'Africa,' by Toto."

Callie nodded. "Both good choices."

"Your turn," Arizona countered. "If you were stuck on a desert island and got to have three novels, which would you choose?"

" _Life of Pi_ ," Callie decided immediately, "so I'd have something optimistic to read. _The Source_ by Michener. And… _The Da Vinci Code_. Now you: What's something you've always wanted to do?"

Arizona scrunched up her face as she thought about it. "Okay, this is kind of a silly one, but I think it's appropriate since we're about to be in Italy. But I've always really wanted to ride one of those scooter things."

"What things?" Callie asked. "Those tourist Segways?"

"No, not those..."

"A motorcycle?"

Arizona laughed. "I've been on a motorcycle before."

"What? I didn't know that."

"Callie, I'm a lesbian, remember? I've dated many women with bikes."

"Oh, yeah," Callie chuckled, rolling her eyes good-naturedly. "How could I forget?"

"Oh!" Arizona remembered. "A Vespa! That's what they're called. I've always wanted to ride one of those baby-blue Vespas."

"Ooh," Callie nodded. "That sounds like fun."

"Your turn. What's the funniest prank you've ever played on someone?"

Callie shook her head. "I can't tell you. You'll be so grossed out. You'll never look at me the same again."

"Now you _have_ to tell me."

Callie raised an eyebrow. "Well, you can't say I didn't warn you."

"I'm ready," Arizona swore. "And, if it comes down to it, I can always throw up in the handy dandy puke bag the airline provided." She gestured toward the seat in front of her, which had a little pocket containing magazines, safety information, and said puke bag.

"Okay, so I was seven or eight, so don't judge me. And I had scraped my leg really badly the week before—I can't remember how. And, while Aria and I were with our nanny, I started compulsively picking the scab off."

Arizona squeezed her eyes shut, already grossed out.

"And I managed to take the thing off whole and realized that it kind of looked like bacon or something..."

Arizona put her head in her hands.

"So I told Aria it was bacon, and she took a bite out of it," Callie finished, grinning.

"Oh my god," Arizona responded, her voice pained. "That's disgusting. You were right."

Callie laughed. "Pretty good prank for a seven-year-old, though, isn't it?"

Arizona shook her head, trying to clear it of the mental image. "Yes, fine. It was clever. And, knowing Aria, she probably deserved it."

"She did," Callie agreed. "Thank you very much." Then, feigning seriousness, she asked, "Do you still like me after hearing that, though?"

Arizona smiled. "Always. And, thankfully," she added, "I know for a fact that you don't pick off your scabs anymore, so I don't have to worry about you pulling that kind of thing on me."

"I would never," Callie vowed. "Only good pranks."

"Good." Arizona pretended to exhale a sigh of relief.

"All right. Here's one. What's something you consistently asked Santa for as a kid but never got?"

"Cindy Crawford," Arizona deadpanned.

Callie laughed. "Doesn't count. Give me another."

"Fine: a horse named Misty."

"Aww. I had a horse," Callie recalled wistfully.

Arizona rolled her eyes. "Of course you did. Her name was…Artemis, right?"

Callie nodded. "My mom always liked those Greek names."

"Okay. What are your favorite scents?"

"We've already established that my favorite's yours," Callie reminded her. "But what else? Hmm. I think jasmine, honeysuckle, and campfires," she decided. "Okay, if you became the opposite gender for twenty-four hours, what would you do?"

"Cindy Crawford," Arizona joked. "No, realistically, I don't think I'd do anything. Maybe I'd walk past a construction site and enjoy not being catcalled."

"Ha," Callie laughed. "Good one."

"Okay. If you could teleport anywhere in the world right now, where would you go?"

Callie didn't even have to consider it. "Nowhere. I'd want to stay here. With you. What about you? Would you go anywhere?"

Arizona shook her head. "Not without you."


	11. Chapter 11

**I've never been good at maintaining a strict update schedule. So - I know I just uploaded a chapter this morning - but here's another one. Let me know if you like it!**

* * *

Finally—almost six hours later—they landed, deplaned, and squinted at the blinding sun.

"Ugh," Callie commented. "Google was right. It must be ninety-five degrees out!"

"And it's only 10a.m.," Arizona reminded her. "It's only getting hotter from here."

"Any chance the apartment building we're staying in has a pool?"

"It does," Arizona assured her. "I made sure to find a place with one because I knew we'd need it."

Callie sighed in relief. "Good."

They made their way through immigration, baggage claim, and finally found a taxi to take them to their Airbnb.

* * *

Getting out of the taxi in front of their building, Callie wanted to kiss the ground. She was grateful to be alive.

"Did you see how fast our taxi driver was going?" Arizona asked as they got into the old-fashioned elevator. "The speedometer said over 150 kilometers. That's like ninety-five miles an hour!"

"I know," Callie groaned. "No wonder we got here in twenty minutes. My Map app said it was supposed to take forty-five."

"Well, at least he gave us an extra twenty-five minutes to explore today," Arizona commented.

When they got to the room, they looked around in awe.

"Ow, wow!" Callie waved Arizona over. "Look at the view!" From their balcony, they could see down a quiet cobblestoned street, with the St. Peter's Basilica dome in the background.

"Wow," Arizona breathed, her hand coming to rest on the small of Callie's back. "We should make dinner at home tonight and eat out here."

"Sounds good to me."

They both showered, changed, and packed their purses with water bottles before heading back outside into the heat of midday.

"Okay," Callie began, flipping through their guidebook, "should we just head in the direction of the Spanish Steps? We can always stop along the way if we see something good."

"Let's do it," Arizona quipped, putting her sunhat on.

Callie touched its brim. "You look so cute in that."

Arizona grinned in response, and off they went, walking down the roads and alleyways in the direction of the Steps.

Eventually, the sidewalks turned from concrete to cobblestones, and Callie grimaced. "Oh, no. Can I hold onto you? Otherwise, I know I'm going to fall."

Arizona knew that Callie was just saying that as an excuse to help _her_ keep her balance, but—still—she appreciated the gesture. The little lie was far better than hearing the truth: _There's no way you're going to be able to keep your balance on these cobblestones with your prosthesis_. So when Callie wrapped her arm around her back, Arizona was happy to wrap hers around Callie's. "Thanks."

Callie smiled back. "What are you thanking me for? I'd fall if it wasn't for you."

"Right. Of course," Arizona countered sarcastically, bumping Callie's hip with hers. It was almost an inside joke between them, this talking-in-code about the leg.

Callie laughed, knowing she was caught. She ducked her head to kiss Arizona's cheek. "I love you."

Arizona tried to keep from smiling, but she couldn't help herself. She pulled the side of Callie's body tighter against hers as she asked, "You've been to Rome before, haven't you?"

Callie nodded. "I traveled all through Italy the summer before college. That was more than twenty years ago, though."

"Do you remember much?" Arizona asked. "Like, is there anywhere we should go that I hadn't thought of?"

"There's this really old restaurant that's good," Callie remembered. "You want to go tomorrow, maybe?"

"Yeah," Arizona smiled. "That sounds good."

* * *

That evening, they came back to their apartment with a bottle of wine, a bag of pasta, and a jar of puttanesca and some green beans they'd found at a farmers' market they'd passed on their way home.

"I'm so hungry," Arizona moaned as they plated the pasta.

"Me, too," Callie agreed, carrying her plate out to the balcony, where their wine awaited them.

Away from all the tourists—in a quieter neighborhood—it felt like they were the only two people around. In the distance, they heard a street musician strumming a guitar and the sound of cars on the busier roads, but that was it.

Callie lifted her wine glass for a toast. "There's so much we could toast to."

"To being in Rome? To time off? To us?" Arizona suggested.

Callie smiled. "All of the above. Cheers." And they clinked their glasses together.

"Today was fun," Arizona commented as they started eating. "I'm glad we didn't have any tours set in stone on our first day. We just got to explore a bit at our own pace."

"We explored a lot," Callie noted with a nod. "My Health app says we walked thirteen miles."

"Good," Arizona laughed. "That means I've already worked off all the bread we're going to eat."

"I still can't believe you planned this whole thing," Callie remarked. "Talk about spontaneous."

Arizona shrugged. "I'll admit, I wanted to woo you a little—to make a grand gesture or whatever."

Callie dropped her hand to Arizona's thigh. "Consider me wooed."

Arizona winced at the contact.

Callie immediately pulled her hand away. "What did I do?" she worried. "Are you okay?"

Arizona shook her head, making a point to smile. "It's nothing, Callie. Don't worry about it."

"We walked thirteen miles today," Callie remembered. Suddenly, those words took on a new meaning as she realized, "You must be in agony."

"It's not that bad," Arizona assured her, referring to the pain in her stump.

"I totally forgot."

Arizona smiled. "Good. I wanted you to."

Callie furrowed her eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

Arizona frowned. "I wanted this to be a sexy trip. My blistering leg or needing to sit down and take breaks constantly is far from sexy."

"You being in pain is far from sexy," Callie argued. " _You_ are always sexy—regardless of the speed we walk." She softened her voice. "I would have been happy taking the Metro instead."

"Callie, really. I'm fine."

Callie sighed. "I'll be right back." She opened the balcony doors and went inside, rummaging through her toiletries for aspirin. She came back with the bottle, a glass of water, and a makeshift ice pack, with a few ice cubes wrapped in a cloth.

"Callie..."

Callie set down the supplies and lifted her hands in defense. "You don't have to let me help. But, at the very least, you have to take care of yourself."

"I was going to," Arizona promised, "but after you went to sleep."

Callie looked at her pleadingly and, finally, Arizona nodded, surrendering to common sense. She downed a few aspirin and then removed her prosthesis, pulling her maxi dress up far enough that she could hold the ice over her sore stump.

Callie deliberately kept her eyes on Arizona's face rather than looking at her leg, not wanting to upset her or embarrass her.

After a few minutes of silence, Arizona finally met Callie's eyes. "I want to be strong," she explained, her voice quiet with vulnerability. "I don't want you to feel like you have to take care of me all the time."

"I don't feel that way," Callie promised. She smiled. "You're strong. You don't need taking care of—you never have. And, when you're in pain, I want to take care of you, not because you need it, but because I want you to feel good. And I love being the cause of it."

Arizona nodded. "I know. It's just…I really wanted the trip to be easy-breezy, and sexy, and purely fun, you know? My pain isn't any of those things."

"Neither is my barfing when I have to do anything related to public speaking," Callie reminded her, relieved when that earned her a genuine smile. "And you've always still been happy to help me get through that."

"I just..." Arizona paused. "I can recognize how ridiculous I'm being, trying to hide this thing from you. But everything was about the leg for so long. I don't want it to be like that again."

"It's not," Callie assured her, "and it's never going to be. It's all about us—being together. And Rome is great, but I don't care how much we see as long as I'm with you."

Arizona leaned in, dropping a kiss on full lips. "I know. You're right. I just hate not being able to travel the way I used to. But I guess we've already established that there are certain benefits to going slow."

Callie smiled. "Exactly. Going slow gives us the chance to savor the city. And, anyway, it's no fun to constantly be on the move. Today, we just had to work hard to stay awake. Tomorrow, we'll be less jetlagged." Then, she stood up, walking behind Arizona's chair. She pulled blonde hair up into a bun to get it out of her way and then brought her hands to Arizona's almost-bare shoulders, thumbs immediately finding her pressure points.

Arizona leaned back into the touch, happy to feel Callie's hands on her. This part of being taken care of she was okay with.

"Massages often are referred to as _erotic_ ," Callie began, "and so, therefore, they're sexy." She began kneading harder, her thumbs pressing into tight muscles.

Arizona moaned at the sensation, and Callie felt her center clench in response to the sound. "Okay, _that_ was definitely sexy."

Arizona laughed, almost prideful that it had taken so little to get Callie's voice to drop, turning husky. She ducked her head to kiss the tan hand that rested on her shoulder.

"I know how sore prosthetics can make your neck and back," Callie explained. "That they literally change your body alignment. Not just yours, I mean—people, in general."

Arizona just hummed in response, her eyes shut now. She recognized that people on nearby balconies could see the strange scene—a woman with one leg, another leg thrown across the ground, and a woman behind her, massaging her shoulders—but, in that moment, she didn't care.

Callie smiled as she felt Arizona begin to relax into her touch. "You have such soft skin."

"Not like yours," Arizona argued sleepily, her eyes still shut.

Callie continued her ministrations in silence for another few minutes, her lips quirking up when she hit a tender spot and heard Arizona moan again. " _Yes, Callie._ Right there."

Okay, at that, Callie got totally turned on. She ducked her head to kiss Arizona's neck. "You." Kiss. She moved to her her shoulder. "Are." Kiss. She moved to the other side of her neck. "Sexy."

Arizona smiled as she reached back and grabbed the back of Callie's head, insisting on continued contact.

Callie kept her lips fixed to a long neck, mouthing porcelain skin, covering that freckle on Arizona's jaw...

"Are you still in pain?" she asked, lips at Arizona's ear.

"Mmm," Arizona murmured. "Much less."

"Good," Callie exhaled, her hands moving down Arizona's back and then back up again, thumbs just brushing the sides of her breasts.

After another minute, Arizona reached for her hand. "Sit with me again."

Callie kissed her neck once more and then sat back in her chair, responding in kind when Arizona immediately entwined their hands. "Thank you."

Callie kissed her hand. "It's my pleasure. Really."


	12. Chapter 12

The next day, they explored the Vatican. St. Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel took up the whole morning, and then they took the Metro to the Trevi Fountain—trying not to walk quite as much as they had the day before.

They managed to get two seats together on the Metro, and Arizona wrapped her arm around Callie's shoulders.

Callie smiled at her, and Arizona grinned back.

Callie chuckled at her face—it was pure joy. She looked almost like a little kid. "You're so cute."

"And you're so pretty," Arizona countered. She brushed her thumb across Callie's cheek. "I think you got a few new freckles yesterday."

"Really?"

Arizona nodded, tracing them with her thumb. Then, she turned back to their guidebook. "Oh, right. I was going to research the Fountain for us." She reclaimed her arm so she could flip through the book.

"Oh, yeah," Callie remembered.

"Okay," Arizona began. "It was completed in 1762 and focuses on the figure of Neptune—or Poseidon, in Greek mythology—who represents water. Oh! Apparently, it's a tradition to toss a coin over your shoulder. People say it'll give you a wish and it'll assure your return to Rome."

"Oooh." Callie was already rummaging through her pockets for a few spare euros. "Let's do it."

* * *

That evening, they went to the restaurant Callie had talked about. Indeed, it was old—the walls were made of rock, not wood, and they were covered in faded paintings.

And—since they were used to eating hours earlier than a typical Italian—they basically had the place to themselves.

"There aren't any tourists here," Arizona noted after they'd ordered their food.

"That's a good sign, right?" Callie asked. "If the locals like it, it's real, traditional Italian food."

When their plates of pasta came, after a quick _grazi!_ they dug right in.

"Mmm," Arizona moaned, her mouth full. "Callie, you have to try this."

"What is it?"

"Linguini and clams in a light sauce." Arizona twirled some linguini onto her fork and held it up toward Callie's lips.

Callie leaned forward and accepted the proffered bite, her lips then shiny with olive oil. "Mmm," she hummed as she chewed. "That's amazing. You want to try this?" she gestured to her own pasta and then worked to twirl Arizona a forkful. "Here."

Arizona leaned forward and took a bite. "Oh, my god. I've never tasted anything so good in my life."

"Right?" Callie laughed.

As they continued eating, Arizona began, "So, I've been meaning to ask: is Italian close enough to Spanish that you can understand it?"

Callie made a face. "I wish. I can understand just enough that it bothers me. Because I can only figure out about half of what someone's saying, and the rest of it's a mystery, and so I just get annoyed. It'd almost be better not to understand anything, like you."

"Hey," Arizona defended. "I understand some things."

"Oh, yeah?" Callie dared, easily falling into their playful banter. "Like what?"

"Well, linguini for one," Arizona reminded her. "Spaghetti. Puttanesca. Rigatoni. Ravioli. Gnocchi. Prosciutto. Pesto!" she remembered.

Callie laughed. "Foods hardly count, you cheater."

Arizona raised an eyebrow at her. "I know how to say 'I love you.'"

"Say it," Callie insisted, her grin mirroring Arizona's. "I dare you."

* * *

When they got back to their Airbnb that night, they were still tipsy on wine and worn out after a long day. They collapsed on the leather couch, side by side.

"I'm so full," Callie groaned.

"I know," Arizona chuckled, leaning her head on Callie's shoulder.

Instinctively, Callie wrapped her arm around her, pulling her closer. She exhaled a long sigh.

Arizona looked up at her. "You okay?"

Callie smiled sleepily. "Just happy."

Arizona smiled back. "Me, too. Oh, wait," she remembered suddenly, extracting herself from Callie and walking into the bathroom.

Callie sat up straighter. "What is it?"

"Stay there!" Arizona called from the other room. "I'll be right back." A minute later, she returned, pulling the coffee table toward them and setting a few things down.

Callie knit her brows together. "What's this?"

Arizona offered her a soft smile. "It's my turn to take care of you."

Callie just looked at her in confusion, waiting for an explanation.

"Callie, you've been wearing a pair of brand-new, non-broken-in sandals for two days now, and you were walking slower than usual tonight. I know the straps are rubbing your feet raw. Come here," she motioned toward her thighs, "give me your legs."

"Arizona, you really don't have to…"

"Please?" Arizona pouted out her lower lip for good measure. "I want to take care of you. Not that you need it," she added, turning serious, "but because I love you and want to take away your pain."

Well, Callie couldn't really argue with that, could she? Arizona was sitting there, totally sincere, nothing but love in her eyes. So, with a little smile, she rested her legs on Arizona's thighs, giving her access to her feet.

Arizona smiled. "Thank you." Carefully, she began to remove Callie's sandals, and Callie started to pull her feet away in response. "Hold on. Let me shower first. My feet are going to stink."

Arizona held tight to Callie's legs. "Don't even think about it. I've got a washcloth and a bowl of hot water right here. I'll give them a little sponge bath."

She dunked the washcloth into the bowl of hot water, wrung our most of the moisture, and then wrapped it around one of Callie's feet.

Callie tipped her head back at the feel of the warm, wet cloth on her blistered foot.

Arizona smiled at her, cleaning one foot of the dirt and dust it had accumulated over the course of the day, and then the other.

She then cleaned Callie's blisters more thoroughly with rubbing alcohol—some of them still bubbled, while others had broken open—and applied Neosporin and Band-Aids.

When she was done, she kept her hands on Callie's feet, her thumbs massaging sore soles.

"I could get used to this," Callie chuckled. "So what's the plan for tomorrow?"

"The Coliseum!" Arizona recalled. "It can get really busy there, I hear, so we're going really early."

"Oh, good," Callie joked.

"I know," Arizona lamented. "We like to sleep in. But it'll be worth it. Plus, we'll get to enjoy it before it gets too hot."

"Ooh, true. Maybe we can check out the pool in the afternoon."

Arizona nodded. "Perfect."

* * *

The following afternoon, after a morning spent at the Coliseum and then a late lunch, Callie and Arizona walked downstairs to their apartment complex's pool in their bathrobes.

"It's so hot," Arizona groaned as she collapsed onto a lounge chair.

"I know," Callie agreed, falling into the chair beside hers.

Arizona started applying sunscreen to her face, and Callie offered, "You want me to get your back?"

Arizona looked over at her. "Oh. Yeah. Thanks." As she took off her bathrobe, she realized how long it had been since Callie had seen so much of her bare skin. And it kind of thrilled her—knowing that she was about to see just as much of Callie.

Callie rubbed the cream deep into white skin, loving the feel of Arizona under her hands.

"Let me get you, too," Arizona offered once Callie was done. That tan skin had gotten hot under the sunlight, and—as Arizona rubbed the sunscreen in—she was tempted to move her tongue along the nape of Callie's neck, to taste her.

She managed to hold back, though, and five minutes later, they were in the cold pool, laughing, twirling, and somersaulting like little kids.

After they had gone back upstairs and showered, Callie felt herself yawn. "I think I'm going to take a nap before dinner." She held out her hand. "Care to join me?"

Arizona immediately nodded, and they fell onto their bed, grateful for the cool white sheets. They tried to get comfortable, turning on their sides and facing each other.

"I can't believe two people are expected to sleep on a full-sized bed all the time here," Arizona remarked. "We hardly fit!"

"Well, it is the City of Love," Callie reminded her. "So the Italians probably manage it by sleeping like this." She moved in closer, closer, until their breasts brushed, their faces inches away.

"Oh." Arizona reached for Callie's hip, pulling her even closer, their legs scissoring. She dimpled. "Like this?"

Callie leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. "Exactly."

And that's how they fell asleep: legs tangled, arms around each other, faces close enough to taste each other.

* * *

That night, they decided to explore the more touristy downtown area close to the Spanish Steps. The roads were filled with people walking, shopping, eating, and slurping down cones of gelato before they melted, dripping down hands and forearms.

"Let's get some!" Arizona exclaimed when she spotted a gelateria that looked especially popular.

They ordered the smallest sized cone the shop sold, and that still meant they got two scoops of gelato each.

After a minute, Callie offered Arizona a taste, and Arizona dropped her lips to the exact spot where Callie had just taken a bite. "Mmm," she hummed. "Is that peach?"

Callie nodded as she swallowed her bite of Arizona's cone. "Strawberry?" she guessed.

"Yup," Arizona grinned.

They managed to finish eating before too much gelato dripped down their arms and continued walking, people-watching all the other tourists they passed.

Among many others, they paused in front of a street musician playing an old John Mayer song for tips. Arizona leaned up and kissed Callie's cheek.

And then, as the guitar player was launching into the chorus again, he pointed right at them and smiled. Callie and Arizona shared a knowing look and instantly reached for each other for a slow dance, resting cheek-to-cheek.

"This feels like a movie," Callie whispered into Arizona's ear with a little chuckle as they swayed together to the rhythm of the music.

Arizona just pulled Callie in closer, hand tight on the back of her neck. She shut her eyes, breathing her in...


	13. Chapter 13

**As always, please let me know what you think!**

* * *

The next morning, Arizona woke up to Callie staring at her.

Arizona pulled the sheet over her head. "You know I hate when you watch me sleep."

Callie pulled the sheet back down so she could see Arizona's face. She laughed at her childish scowl and tucked a wisp of tangled blonde hair behind her ear. "Sorry."

"What's wrong?" Arizona asked. "I know you. You do this when you want to say something and are too nervous to."

"Nothing's wrong," Callie promised. "I was just patiently waiting for you to wake up."

"Impatiently," Arizona grumbled, still grouchy with sleep.

Callie leaned down, kissing that freckle on her jaw. "Fine," she smiled. "Impatiently."

"What's the rush?" Arizona asked, sitting up, her back against the headboard. "I think today and tomorrow we have more quiet days."

"We do," Callie nodded. "Which is what allowed me to come up with this new little plan."

"Which is...?" Arizona prompted.

Callie pecked her lips and then got up. "Let's get dressed and eat breakfast first. Then, I'll show you."

An hour later, Callie led Arizona downstairs, equipped with a picnic basket and overnight bag slung over her shoulder. She held her arms out in front of them. "Surprise!"

Arizona looked in front of her. And there, clearer than day, was her dream: a shiny baby-blue Vespa. "Oh, my god, Callie!" she exclaimed, practically jumping up and down. "You're serious? I get to ride it?"

Callie grinned and nodded.

"But where's yours?" she asked.

"Hey, I'm riding shotgun this time. I'll be the damsel sitting behind you, holding on for dear life."

Arizona laughed. "So where are we going?"

"It's kind of a long trip. I can direct you there, though."

Callie showed Arizona the controls, repeating what the rental agency had told her, and then she hopped on behind her, tightly clutching a narrow middle.

"You ready?"

Callie nodded against her back. "Terrified, but ready."

"Good," Arizona quipped, shifting the scooter into action as they flew down the road, heading for the highway.

Behind her, Callie shouted the occasional direction, telling Arizona to turn left or right or stay on the road for however many miles.

As the warm breeze wove through Arizona's hair, she felt more free than she had in years.

Eventually, they were the only vehicle on the highway, and farms and orchards spread around them—rather than modern apartments and stores. Once in a while, they'd pass an old stone structure or house that looked far different from what they'd gotten used to in Rome.

"Callie...where _are_ we?" Arizona asked in awe.

"We're almost there. Turn left here, onto this narrow little bike path."

Arizona followed her order, and they began to wind up a small hill, fields spreading on either side of them.

"Right up here," Callie pointed. "Stop right there."

Arizona pulled off to the side of the road, and then Callie walked the scooter a few hundred feet from the road, with Arizona following close behind.

They stopped at the edge of a meadow, just overlooking a small lake below.

"Whoa."

Callie looked over at Arizona and smiled. "Do you like it?"

Arizona just nodded, utterly speechless.

Callie's smile widened. "I packed us a little picnic..."

They sat down, right there, feeling like there was no one around for miles, eating a lunch of fruit, wine, a baguette, brie, and prosciutto.

"So now that we're here," Arizona began, "can you tell me the plan?"

"Oh, sure," Callie remembered, swallowing her bite of bread. "I passed through this place when I came before—I'm not even sure if the town has a name—and I remembered how pretty it was. I figured you'd like it, too."

"I do," Arizona nodded. "I really, really do."

"And there isn't any tourism around here, but there's a bed-and-breakfast a town over, and I booked us a room there for the night." Callie shrugged. "Just for a little change of scenery."

Arizona leaned over and kissed her. "It's perfect."

After they finished eating, they lay down right there, side-by-side, Arizona's fingers brushing Callie's arm.

Callie opened her eyes, perusing Arizona's face. "There's such a nice breeze here. Feels so different from the sweltering heat."

Arizona just hummed in agreement, already verging on sleep.

Callie scooted forward, her lips running the length of Arizona's cheek.

"Mmm." Arizona reached for her, hand rubbing down her back.

Callie kept up the contact, lips moving south as she mouthed the column of Arizona's throat, the skin of her chest...

And then Arizona was pulling Callie's face to hers, ravenous, sucking on a full bottom lip as she arched her back, pushing her chest forward, wanting to feel now of Callie's body against hers.

Taken off-guard, Callie moaned in surprise...which Arizona instantly took advantage of, her tongue dipping into Callie's mouth, getting a better taste of her. She palmed rounded breasts with her hands, loving how soft they felt, even through Callie's bra.

"God, Arizona," Callie exhaled, her heart quickening.

Arizona smiled into the kiss, trying to slow herself down before she got carried away. She brought her lips to Callie's neck as she tried to catch her breath.

Callie laughed, equally breathless. "How do you do this to me?"

Arizona knew it was a rhetorical question—and one that didn't require clarification—but, still, she dared, "What exactly do I do to you?"

Callie met Arizona's wanton eyes and gulped. It was so hard to move slow with those blue eyes on her, like that.

Arizona waited. And, finally, Callie articulated, "You touch me and I feel like I'm on fire. Like I'm burning. But in a good way—as if the heat's radiating from the inside out."

Arizona's lips quirked up, her eyes sparkling.

Callie felt herself melting. _That face._ "And when you look at me like that, I feel it, too. Warmth everywhere."

Arizona's thumb reached up to trace Callie's cheek. "You want to go swimming? It might cool us off."

"Really?" Callie asked. "I don't think I brought our suits..."

Arizona shrugged. "So we'll go in without them. No one else is around. Let's just go in our underwear."

At the tiny dock, they pulled their shirts off over their heads and yanked off their pants. Arizona sat down to take off her prosthesis, and Callie set it down safely on the grassy riverbank behind them.

Arizona jumped right in, her breath catching at the shock of the cold.

Callie watched from the dock, slow to enter, and then finally dipped her foot in. "It's freezing!"

Arizona laughed. "It's worth it. Get in here!"

Squeezing her eyes shut, Callie hopped off the dock after her, quickly breast-stroking to catch up.

* * *

That night, they lay on their hotel bed—a queen-sized mattress, this time—in lightweight pajamas, sun-kissed and sated after a good day.

"You were right," Arizona decided. "This place is pretty. More than pretty."

Callie smiled. "Even more so with you here." She playfully tapped Arizona's nose with her index finger.

Arizona opened her mouth, playfully catching Callie's finger between her teeth. "Same goes for you."

* * *

The next day, after a morning of exploring the local orchards, Callie and Arizona found themselves back at the lake. They took a quick swim and then lay at the edge of the meadow again, their overnight bag and Vespa beside them.

Callie exhaled contentedly as she let the sun dry off her wet skin, her folded hands a pillow for her head. After a minute, she blinked her eyes open and saw Arizona, already staring. "What?" she asked, a little self-conscious.

Arizona smiled. "I guess I kind of get why you like to watch me sleep. You look so peaceful, with your eyes shut. And I can look at you for as long as I want."

"Oh," Callie laughed. "That's a comforting thought."

Arizona reached up, tracing the bow of full lips with her thumb. She looked so thoughtful and solemn that Callie's smile faded. Instead, she stared at Arizona with wide eyes.

Arizona offered a soft smile. "You are my dream woman, Callie Torres."

Callie felt flowers bloom in her abdomen. She felt her breathing stop.

Arizona just smiled, covering those lips with hers.


	14. Chapter 14

**Credit goes to OddCoupler222 for inspiration for the first scene!**

 **And, as always, please leave me sweet reviews! Tell me: what part or line did you like best?**

* * *

That night, they went back to their Airbnb in Rome and—given the full-sized bed constraints—woke up entwined the next morning.

Arizona stirred awake, her eyes slowly opening to the sunlight filtering through the lace curtains, and then she suddenly stilled. In sleep, Callie's thigh had somehow found its way between hers and, now, the pressure against her center made her shiver.

She worked to extract herself, but—still asleep—Callie's arm tightened around her, pulling her closer, harder against her thigh.

Arizona felt her breath shudder out. _I must have had a dream,_ she realized. _A wet one._ There was no other explanation for why she was suddenly so turned-on. If Callie moved her leg again, Arizona knew she'd be done for—beyond stopping.

Again, she tried to add some separation between their bodies, but Callie's arm was holding her tight.

"Callie?" Arizona whispered, hoping the brunette was close to consciousness.

"Mm?" Callie groused, her eyes still shut.

"I have to get up. Can you let go of me?"

At that, Callie opened her eyes, squinting at the bright room. She focused on Arizona's face. "What is it?" she grogged, still half-asleep.

"Hey," Arizona breathed, overwhelmed by the sight of those soulful brown eyes.

Beginning to rouse, Callie smiled, her hand coming up to trace Arizona's features. "Good morning, beautiful."

Arizona smiled, momentarily forgetting why she'd woken Callie up in the first place. When Callie leaned in to kiss her, though, her position shifted enough that her thigh pressed to her center again, and then she suddenly remembered. She squeezed her eyes shut, leaning away from Callie—trying to create some space between them.

Callie's brows furrowed at Arizona's pained expression. "Did I hurt you?" she lifted the sheet. "Is your leg-" She reached toward a porcelain thigh.

Arizona quickly shook her head, wanting to keep Callie from touching her. That would only make it worse. "You didn't hurt me."

"Then what-" Callie shifted closer again, and Arizona tried to swallow back her moan.

"Arizona." Callie's eyes widened. "Are you...?"

"I think I had a dream," Arizona explained, her eyes screwed shut.

Callie's lips quirked up. As she processed the implication, she suddenly felt herself getting turned-on. "About _me_? Was it...?"

Arizona just nodded, not trusting herself to speak without moaning. Callie's thigh was still pressed to her, the pressure unrelenting.

"You sure you want to get up? I could help..." Callie ran her hand down Arizona's side.

Arizona nodded, then shook her head. Finally, she was able to pull away while Callie remained still, watching her carefully. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Arizona vowed, putting on her prosthesis. She smiled. "Or I will be. As soon as I take a cold shower."

"Me, too," Callie muttered under her breath once Arizona had locked herself in their bathroom.

* * *

They went to a cafe for breakfast and, as Arizona nibbled on her croissant, she refused to meet Callie's eyes.

"Arizona," Callie chuckled, finally breaking the silence, "if you're embarrassed, you really, really, _really_ shouldn't be."

Arizona looked up, one side of her mouth lifting into a smile. "If I'm being honest, it's a miracle this didn't happen before now. We've been sleeping together for a week now and you're, well, _you_."

"And you're _you_ ," Callie countered. "And how much I wanted you before this morning—which, for the record, was endlessly—doesn't even begin to compare to how I feel now."

That earned Callie a full smile. Arizona reached out for her hand. "Well, I'm glad I'm not alone in my suffering."

"Oh, you're not," Callie assured her. "And, you know, we have been moving slow. First I was patient with you, and then now you've been patient with me, but..." She paused, then decided: "You don't have to be patient anymore."

Arizona lifted a brow. "Do you mean...?" She trailed off.

Callie chuckled. "What I mean is that we've gone slowly enough. Now I want more. I want to, you know," she blushed, "make you feel good."

Arizona felt her blood pumping in her ears. _And somewhere else_. "I want that, too. I mean, I want to," playfully, she danced in her seat, " _salsa_ with you."

At that, Callie threw her head back and laughed, remembering their old euphemism from back when they had "ladies nights" with Bailey and Teddy. "Yes. Good." Then, she shook her head, trying to clear it of the mental image of Arizona, naked, on top of her. "So: What do you want to do today?"

Arizona looked at her hopefully. "Ride the Vespa again? Head along the highway and see where we end up?"

"Ooh, serendipitous. You're such a romantic."

Arizona dimpled. "You know it."

* * *

This time, they headed down the highway in the opposite direction. Arizona had finally gotten the hang of the Vespa and of driving in Italy, and Callie finally stopped shutting her eyes in terror and actually enjoyed the scenery.

"You want to stop and walk through one of these orchards?" Arizona suggested after a half-hour of riding.

"Sure," Callie agreed, and they pulled off the road, cut the engine, and began to walk toward the fruit trees.

Arizona reached for Callie's hand. "Someone must own all these, right? As we drove, I looked for a house or a building or something along this road, but there hasn't been anything in miles."

Callie shrugged. "Maybe they belong to the town itself? I don't know."

They walked deeper into the grove, peach and apricot trees sprouting out on either side of them.

"What do you think," Arizona suggested a few minutes later; "of spending the afternoon right here, under the shade of the trees?" She lifted up the picnic blanket she'd had enough foresight to bring.

Immediately, Callie nodded. " _Yes_."

While Arizona laid down the blanket under the shade of a tree, Callie walked a few yards away, picking them a handful of ripe peaches.

They lay side-by-side, looking up at the trees, the sun, the bright blue sky. Arizona wiped the peach juice from her lips, and Callie licked at the drip that had gone down her wrist.

Arizona groaned. "I'm going to be sticky from head-to-toe by the time we leave."

"Me too," Callie agreed. "First it was just sweat, and now this."

Arizona raised herself up on her elbow, leaning down to kiss Callie's lips. She lingered there for a second longer than usual, humming contentedly. "You taste good, though."

"So do you," Callie hummed, lifting her hand to Arizona's hip.

Arizona moved her lips and tongue down a tan jaw, relishing in how sweet she tasted.

"I can't believe the trip's almost over," Callie lamented, her eyes fluttering shut at the contact. "It's been so good."

"It has been so good," Arizona murmured in agreement, her lips affixed to Callie's throat. Now that Callie had given her the green light to move a little—or a lot—faster, it was all she could think about.

And, after that morning's wake-up call, Callie could already feel herself getting turned on, even at Arizona's simple touch, her hot breath on her neck. She brought her hands to the small of a lithe back, pulling Arizona closer.

Arizona pulled back, just enough to look into Callie's eyes. She dimpled, delighted.

"Come here," Callie chuckled in response, grabbing the back of Arizona's neck and pulling her to her, moaning when she got to taste those peach-rimmed lips again.

Arizona smiled into the kiss, thrilled by the sound of Callie's moan. She held her weight on her arms, leaning over the taller woman, feeling full breasts brush against hers.

And, at that, Callie felt herself grow increasingly wanton, growling as she pulled Arizona on top of her, a thigh falling between hers. She ran her hand down Arizona's back. "Is this okay?"

"Hold on," Arizona breathed, pulling away only long enough to alter her position so that her right thigh lay between Callie's rather than her prosthesis. "Yeah. Now I'm good."

Callie bent her legs a little at the knee, and Arizona shut her eyes in response to the newfound pressure in the place where she wanted it most. Apparently, the cold shower hadn't totally worked. She pressed her own thigh harder against Callie.

"Arizona..."

Arizona stomach lurched at the way Callie said her name—something between a plea and a groan, so quiet and breathy that it sounded almost reverential. She leaned down, putting most of her weight on Callie as she kissed those lips she loved, already bruised by want. She brought her hands up Callie's sides, thumbs rubbing rhythmically across breasts, feeling Callie's nipples harden, even through her bra.

Arizona brought her lips to Callie's ear, exhaling, "Calliope..." She knew how Callie had always gotten, when Arizona said her name, like that. And, right on schedule, she felt the body beneath her lurch up to meet hers.

Arizona laughed lightly at her effect on Callie, but the sound quickly transformed into a moan when she felt hands on her ass, pulling her down as Callie's hips thrust up, the movement delicious on her clit.

"God, Callie."

And, this time, it was Callie who smiled, suddenly prideful. She kissed her way down Arizona's cheek, searching for her lips. Immediately, their tongues met, their mouths open, their breaths uneven, flowing into each other's mouths.

Callie lifted her hips again and, this time, Arizona ground hers down to meet them, a little whimper escaping her lips.

They kept kissing, slowly moving against each other, the seams of their jeans providing the perfect amount of friction and pressure.

Callie brought her hands beneath Arizona's shirt and palmed bare skin. She ran them up her spine, expertly unhooking a bra. Then, she shifted her body a little so that she could reach the buttons of Arizona's shirt, fumbling to undo them. She willed her fingers to move faster, wanting to see the breasts she loved again. But she didn't even have time to undo the last two bottom buttons when Arizona pushed the blouse down her shoulders and arms. It fell down her stomach, still knotted around her.

Callie's hands immediately came up to cup those naked breasts, her thumbs running over them. "God," she breathed. "They're even better than I remember."

Arizona laughed, her own hands finding the hot skin under Callie's shirt.

Callie lifted her head enough to kiss Arizona's chest, her breasts...

She took a nipple in her mouth, lolling over it with her tongue.

Arizona's hands immediately tightened on Callie. Her body craving friction, she began to move again, her breath coming out in a rush.

Callie's lips migrated to the other nipple, her hips lifting instinctually to meet Arizona's rhythm.

Arizona surged forward, searched for her lips, and they kissed hard and sloppily as they humped each other's thighs, their movements becoming increasingly rushed and hard. Then, all at once, Arizona tore her mouth away from Callie's and ducked her face into her neck as she tried to slow her breathing.

"Arizona, I-" Callie's words cut off with a groan, her breath hissing out.

Arizona shut her eyes, her tongue licking the salt from Callie's neck. "I know. Me, too."

"Come here," Callie panted, her hand smoothing over soft blonde hair.

As their mouths found each other again, Arizona felt herself pressing her pelvis harder against Callie, her movements beyond her control. At the feel of Arizona shuddering against her, Callie felt her own climax hit, and suddenly she tumbled into her own orgasm. She moaned into Arizona's mouth and swallowed Arizona's scream, the two of them fumbling for each other as they continued grinding against each other, giving themselves to the waves of pleasure that washed over them.

After another minute, Arizona collapsed beside Callie with sweat on her brow and her face flushed red.

Callie turned her head to look at her, still out of breath. "That was fun."

Arizona grinned. "It would've been even better if you had been topless, too. And pantsless," she added.

Callie reached for her hand, promising, "Tonight."

"Good."

"We can have our _real_ 'last first time' then," Callie decided. "I'll make it more romantic than a romp in the hay." She picked up a handful of sticks and leaves. "Literally."

Arizona reached for her bra.

Callie sighed dramatically. "Gone too soon."

Arizona laughed, "Tonight," she vowed.

They lay on the blanket together—clothes back in place—ready to fall into a post-coitus nap, in the heat, under the fruit trees that canopied them.

After a few minutes of thoughtful silence, Callie offered, "You know, I know I called what just happened 'not romantic,' but I think we can still call it 'making love.'"

Arizona turned to look at her skeptically. "In our clothes? I'm not sure that counted as sex, exactly."

"The end result was the same!" Callie reminded her, kissing her still-flushed cheek.

"True," Arizona conceded, unable to bite back her smile.

"And just the way you touch me," Callie continued, "it's always with love-"

"And the way you touch me," Arizona reminded her.

"Yeah," Callie nodded. "And, like, we genuinely like to make each other feel good. That's not true for every couple—but it's always been true for us."

Arizona nodded, reaching up to brush her thumb over Callie's cheek. "I want you to always feel good."

Callie reached for her hand, pressing her lips to Arizona's knuckles. "I know."

Arizona twinkled at her, and they passed a minute in silence, just staring into each other's eyes.

"So, that little... _activity_ killed about five minutes..." Callie joked.

"Hey," Arizona defended, "it was long overdue."

" _Years_ overdue," Callie agreed.

"And, again," Arizona reminded her, "you're _you_. Have you seen yourself? Of course I came quickly."

"Ha," Callie rolled her eyes, but she was blushing. "What should we do now?"

Arizona shrugged. "Nap, eat some more peaches, make out a little? Or a lot." She wiggled her eyebrows.

"All of life's best pleasures," Callie chuckled. "I feel gluttonous."

"Don't," Arizona insisted softly, leaning in to brush Callie's lips with hers. "Like you said, it's years overdue. And we deserve some pleasure without a price."


	15. Chapter 15

**Psst. Let me know what you think.**

* * *

The next morning, Callie didn't wake up until eleven. She opened her eyes and saw she was still curved around Arizona's naked form. Then, she leaned down, brushing her lips across Arizona's back. She moved blonde hair aside and suctioned the nape of her neck.

Arizona hummed, the sensation waking her up.

Callie smiled as she continued to kiss her. "We slept in. It's already after eleven."

"Yeah, but we stayed up until dawn," Arizona groused, ducking her face into her pillow.

Callie chuckled as she pulled Arizona more tightly against her. "I know. And I don't know what you did to me, but my legs are sore."

Arizona laughed, turning in Callie's arms and squeezing her tight, their legs tangling. She breathed in the scent of Callie's neck, promising, "I'll be gentler today."

Callie pulled away so she could look her in the eyes, her expression disbelieving. "You want to go _again_?"

Arizona shrugged coyly. "What can I say? I can't get enough of you." Her hand snaked between their bodies, and she watched in awe as Callie's eyes fluttered shut at the newfound contact. She raised an eyebrow. "And it feels like you might be up for it, too." She squeezed Callie's clit between her fore- and middle-finger, grinning when Callie convulsed under her touch.

Callie shook her head, suddenly lustful in spite of herself. "God, I'll never get enough of you," she realized, surging forward and pressing their lips together, their bodies responding in kind.

* * *

They went out for lunch and gelato as a final goodbye to the city, and then—before they knew it—they were on a plane back to the US.

"I'm glad we got Sofia a few t-shirts," Arizona offered. "That way, she'll at least know we were thinking of her."

"And we did miss her. But I'm glad we got some time alone."

"Me, too," Arizona grinned, reaching for Callie's hand.

Callie couldn't help but laugh at her ecstatic expression—she was so in love with Arizona's smile. "When we get home, we still have three more weeks off. Let's find ourselves a house."

"Don't forget, we also have to host my parents for one last day first."

Callie waved the anxiety off. "We'll be fine. Your parents are slightly saner than mine."

"Only slightly," Arizona reminded her with a smile.

"We should try to sleep again," Callie suggested a minute later. "Otherwise, we're going to feel dead when we get home. Remember how tired we were our first day in Rome?"

Arizona groaned. "I hate jet lag."

"Me, too." Callie leaned over and kissed her hair. "But I love you."

* * *

Finally, over fifteen hours later, they were home. Lugging their suitcases behind them, they rang the doorbell to their house, knowing Sofia was waiting inside.

"I'll bet you five bucks Sofia screeches when she sees us," Callie dared.

And, sure enough, five seconds later, Sofia screamed as she opened the door, with Barbara and Daniel standing right behind her.

"Mommy! Mama!" She immediately wrapped her arms around their middles. "I missed you!"

Callie and Arizona laughed. "We missed you, too!" They hugged her back, peppering her face with kisses.

Callie looked up at Arizona's parents and saw that they were smiling at the familial scene. "We can't thank you enough for staying with her this week."

"It was our pleasure, Callie," Barbara assured her. "We had a great time. Isn't that right, Sofia?"

Sofia's head bobbed up and down. "Yeah! We went to the zoo, and a museum, and the pool, and-" Mid-sentence, she ran inside, and all the adults looked at each other and chuckled.

"Can I help you two with your suitcases?" Daniel offered, already reaching for Callie's.

"Oh, thank you."

"So you all had a good time?" Arizona prompted as they all walked inside. "Was she well-behaved?"

"An absolute angel," Barbara vowed.

Daniel chuckled in his stiff way. "She reminds me a lot of you, Arizona."

Arizona's eyebrows furrowed. "In what way?"

Barbara laughed. "Well, for one thing, she's a perky little thing."

"It's also the little things," Daniel added, suddenly thoughtful. "How she bites her lip and scrunches her mouth to the side when she's thinking. You always did that."

Callie rested her hand on the small of Arizona's back. "She still does." Then, she added, "Sofia plays with her hair the same way, too, when she's nervous. Did you notice that?"

"Yes!" Barbara exclaimed. She turned back to Arizona. "Honey, there's no doubt that girl's yours—and you, too, Callie. She looks just like you."

Callie and Arizona beamed, and then Callie offered, "Arizona and I might be too jet lagged to go out for dinner, but how about we order us all some Chinese food?"

"Yeah," Arizona nodded. "We want to hear what you've been up to this week!"

"And we want to hear about Rome!" Barbara laughed.

"Wait, wait!" Sofia exclaimed, bounding down the stairs. "Before we do anything..." She ran to stand in front of her moms and handed them a handmade card. "Here. Grandma and Grandpa helped me make this for you this morning."

"Oh, wow!" Arizona gushed, taking the card from Sofia. "It's beautiful, Sof!"

Callie pointed to the front of it. "Is this me and Mommy?"

"Uh-huh. And Grandpa helped me with the old buildings and stuff, 'cause I didn't know how to draw those. But I drew you, and Mommy, and the sun, because Grandma said it's really hot there. And, look, Mommy! You're holding Mama's hand while you're walking, just like you do at home."

"It's really amazing, sweetie," Callie complimented.

"There's an inside, too!" Sofia reminded them, tearing the card away so she could open it for them.

"'Dear Mom and Mama,'" Arizona read. "'Welcome home! I missed you so much. Lots of love, Sofia Robin Sloan Torres.'"

"Aww," Callie smiled.

Arizona leaned down to kiss their daughter's cheek. "This is a very sweet card, honey. Thank you."

"And I like that you wrote your whole name out!" Callie complimented. "It's a special one."

Sofia beamed.

* * *

An hour later, they sat around the dining room table, their stomachs full of Chinese food and their mouths busy chatting and catching up.

Callie was listening on as Daniel—very seriously—explained to Sofia the best way to make a grilled cheese sandwich. On the other side of the table, Barbara turned her attention to Arizona.

"It's nice to see you and Callie together again."

Arizona faced her.

"We got to see you two interact before, at your wedding, and for a little while you recovered after the plane crash," Barbara continued, "but that was a long time ago, and you've separated a few times since."

Arizona nodded, conceding, "We've been through a lot." _That's putting it mildly_.

Barbara offered a poignant smile. "I know. But, you know, even with all that, your love for each other has always been undeniable." She nodded over at Callie, whose eyes were fixed on Arizona's face. "Just look at the way she looks at you."

Arizona looked over at Callie, instantly blushing at the intensity she was watching her with.

Barbara chuckled at her daughter's expression. "That woman loves you more than anything. She's exactly the kind of person I'd hoped you'd find to spend your life with. She's a keeper, Arizona"

Arizona ducked her head. "I know. I'm glad we're finally making it work again."

Barbara kissed her daughter's hair. "I've never seen you so happy."

A minute later, Arizona got up, grabbing her and her mom's plates and bringing them over to the sink. On her way back, she couldn't help but lean over the back of Callie's chair and drop a kiss on her cheek while—unbeknownst to her—Barbara looked on, her eyes twinkling.

* * *

After dinner, Sofia suggested, "Can we all play a game? Grandpa taught me a new one!"

"Oh, yeah," Daniel remembered. "How many times do you think we played, Sofia? Fifty?"

"Fifty-thousand!" Sofia insisted.

Daniel laughed as he turned to Callie and Arizona. "I think it's safe to say it's her new favorite."

"What game is it, Sof?" Callie asked.

"Bullshot!"

Arizona's eyebrows knit together as she looked over at her dad. " _Bullshot_?" She'd never even heard of it.

"Well," Barbara explained, "we adapted the name, a little."

"Ohhh," Callie suddenly understood. "Bull... _shot_. So, B.S.?"

"Exactly," Daniel winked.

"Do you know how to play?" Sofia asked, looking between her moms.

"Yes, sweetie, we know how to play." Arizona wrapped her arm around her. "And it's my favorite card game, too."

* * *

That night, after saying goodnight to Sofia and their house guests, Callie and Arizona lay together in the master bedroom.

Callie smiled at Arizona in the darkness. "You know," she whispered, "I never really thought your dad was good with kids until now."

Arizona turned to face her, waiting.

"He was so...stiff when we prepared for the wedding, remember? And he seemed scary rather than warm to me," Callie continued. "But he's so sweet with Sofia. He totally adores her."

"He does," Arizona agreed. "He's always been a softy around kids, and—since Sofia's his only grandkid—I'm sure he'll spoil her for life."

Callie laughed. "That's okay. I'm glad they have such a close relationship. She's going to want Grandma and Grandpa Camp next year, too."

Arizona curled closer to Callie, grinning, "Does that mean you and I get to take another trip together?"

Callie pecked her lips, her eyes wide. "You miss Italy already?"

Arizona shrugged, admitting, "I got a certain thrill from what we did in the orchard. But there aren't any abandoned orchards in Seattle for us to lose ourselves in."

"True," Callie conceded. "But we do have a _bed_." Kiss. "And a couch." Kiss. "And the floor of the kitchen."

At that, Arizona laughed, overcome with the memory of them christening—or, well, _dirtying_ —every flat surface when they had first moved in together—and then again in the house they'd bought all those years ago. "Let's save all that for the new house," she suggested. "That'll be _our_ house—maybe forever."

Callie leaned in to kiss the tip of her nose. "Forever."


End file.
